


The Butcher's Traps

by Mable



Series: The Buried Voice Trilogy [2]
Category: Five Nights at Freddy's
Genre: Charlie and Sammy are hunted by monsters from the past, Horror, Murder, Protective Siblings, Suspense, the twisted ones
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-11-02
Updated: 2021-03-06
Packaged: 2021-03-09 03:15:55
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 12
Words: 87,531
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27357886
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Mable/pseuds/Mable
Summary: Charlie and Sammy’s new life are thrown into a tailspin when dangerous creatures begin to roam the streets of Hurricane. With nowhere to run, they, along with Charlie’s friends and a few others, must uncover the truth about these violent attacks or else become the next casualty on their rapidly growing list.
Series: The Buried Voice Trilogy [2]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1990075
Comments: 22
Kudos: 57





	1. Tempest

Thick, dark clouds hung ominously in the sky outside of the diner. They had been creeping in all day but only now did Jessica take real notice of them looming in the distance. Apparently the local forecast calling for thunderstorms was right, though this looked a little more intense than a typical storm. Shrugging it off, she decided not to take it as any sort of sign and instead sipped at her soda.

Charlie was running a little late, Jessica had been expecting it. Her robotics class always ran over a few extra minutes, which was why the plan was to meet here instead of waiting on campus. Now she could get a head start on her order and see if it beat her friend to the table. Hearing the ringing of the bell above the door, she looked over to see if she had arrived.

It wasn't Charlie, but Jessica did recognize the young man who had walked into the diner. He went to the university with them and she recalled seeing Charlie speak to him once or twice. The blond, however, didn't know him at all, so she lowered her eyes to the lone menu and glanced over all the things she hadn't ordered. Perhaps she should've gone with the turkey on rye instead of the chicken salad.

She didn't realize that the young man had noticed her or that he was walking over until he was right beside the table. "Hey, you're Charlie's friend, right? I don't think I've ever caught your name," he greeted with a friendly tone. She looked up and he offered his hand. "I'm Arty."

"Nice to finally meet you. I'm Jessica," she returned with her own smile. So that was it, Arty. She remembered Charlie mentioning Arty once or twice but somehow never connected the name with the face. "I've seen you around campus. Charlie said you share a couple of classes with her."

"Glad to hear she talks about me when I'm not around," he 'joked'. Not quite a joke though, not with the goofy smile that followed it. He sat down on the other side of the booth. "Actually, I thought I might catch her here. She mentioned she usually comes here for lunch."

"Practically every day. It's sort of our meet up and vent at the world time," Jessica actually joked. She tapped her lavender painted nails on her glass thoughtfully. "But don't you take the same class? How'd you get here so fast?"

"We do! Last I saw, she was asking our professor questions about this project we just got. I was thinking of asking her if she wanted to collaborate. Seems like we get a lot of work done when we're partnered up," Arty said. That was when she noticed it, that glint in his eye mixed with the goofy smile on his face. He was definitely crushing on her.

Jessica didn't want to be the bearer of bad news, but it almost didn't seem fair to not say something. She would have to break it to him easily, stalling a little longer. "I know what you mean. We don't share any classes right now, but we've worked together on our own things. Sort of bouncing ideas off each other and seeing what sticks."

"So, you guys are pretty close."

"Best friends since childhood. In fact, only a couple of months ago I moved by from New York so we could do the whole college experience together. Totally worth it."

"That's great!" Arty hesitated a long moment with a sort of uncertain smile. Then asked, "So, do you know if Charlie's seeing anyone, or…?" Well, that would make her job to break the news a little easier.

"Actually there's someone who Charlie's been seeing, and it looks like it's getting pretty serious," Jessica said as gently as she could. 'Serious' might've been an exaggeration, but they were definitely going steady. At least, they went out to a meal or an event every couple of weeks, something that Jessica had been ecstatic about. She had been eagerly trying to nudge John and Charlie together and was finally seeing the fruits of her labor. That didn't mean she didn't feel for Arty though.

"Gotcha… I guess I should've expected that. Charlie's pretty great, of course she'd have a boyfriend," he said. He looked positively defeated, like a kicked puppy. "I was just hoping she didn't since she never brought him up."

"It's sort of a new thing. Sometimes you want to be careful, don't want to jinx it. Really don't want to get people gossiping too early," Jessica said. Again, a joke to lighten the mood, but Arty suddenly gave her a peculiar look. As though she had said something that caught his interest in a different way. This was interrupted by the arrival of the waitress who dropped off Jessica's sandwich.

"I should probably get going," Arty said and stood to leave.

"You don't have to go. Charlie will be here soon. If you want, you could stay and have lunch with us," Jessica offered. She hoped it would take some of the soreness out of the wound. A light flush took to Arty's face.

"Nah, I'm not really hungry. You two just enjoy your meal and tell Charlie I'll see her later," he fumbled. Then he hurried out of the diner, perhaps not wanting to be there when Charlie arrived and risk her finding out about their conversation. The blond raised a brow slightly before shrugging and moving onto her meal. She was only a few bites in when, finally, her friend had arrived.

Charlie came into the diner in the same disorganized fashion that she entered and exited every class. Backpack overstuffed and hanging off, carrying a notebook or more in one arm, usually carrying a pencil in the other, as though she would suddenly be inspired and have to jot something down. If someone saw her on campus, they may think she was in over her head, but Jessica knew better. Charlie wasn't just excelling at her classes, she totally threw herself into them. So focused on them that she didn't care how she looked.

"Sorry I'm late. I got caught up with Dr. Treadwell and time got away from me. We just got handed a new assignment and I already know I'm going to get in over my head," Charlie said. She said it with an eager smile too, so apparently this was exactly what she wanted. If she had been vocal about any complaints in class, it was that they had yet to do much direct work.

"Finally! It's about time they let you do some hands-on stuff," Jessica congratulated with a smile. She then pointed to the door. "I think Arty said something about that. I just ran into him- and might've just learned his name, but don't tell him that." She watched as Charlie took the menu to look over it before getting a sly smile. "He's got thing for you, you know."

"…Yeah, I know," Charlie admitted awkwardly. She fiddled with the edge of the menu between her thumbs. "I haven't been trying to lead him on or anything. It just sort of happened."

"Yeah, that's usually how it is. Speaking of which, any plans this weekend?" Jessica asked, resting her chin on her interlaced fingers, giving her a very interested look. Charlie knew exactly what she was getting at.

"The only date I have is with a textbook, a tool box, and whatever I end up bringing to life in the process. If I'm lucky, I'll be a mad scientist by the end of the week," she joked. Jessica was less enthused.

"Just don't work yourself to death. You're going to get a good grade regardless, so make sure to take a break now and then, okay? Maybe we could get everyone together and do minigolf."

"That actually doesn't sound half bad," Charlie agreed. She raised a hand to flag for the waitress. "So, how's your day been?"

"Oh! Glad you brought that up!" Jessica exclaimed, slapping her hands on the table. "You're never going to believe what they found curled up in the stairwell this morning-."

Their meet-up went on as it usually did. A comfortable routine that Charlie and Jessica had adapted to ever since the semester had begun. Definitely a perk of going to the same college and having similar schedules.

Life had been pretty good since the reunion a few months previously. While her schedule was tight, she was able to make enough time with her friends to not feel overwhelmed. Though Charlie couldn't say she didn't sometimes like that pressure put on her by her classes, such as now. She made it through the rest of the day eagerly awaiting getting home and starting on this new opportunity.

Charlie let herself into the house with a call of, "I'm home!" She shut the door behind her, clicked the lock in place, and by time she turned around again she was joined by her brother, Sammy. He greeted her with a wide smile and a welcoming hug. He released her after a few seconds and guided her by the hand to the living room.

Life with Sammy had gone a lot smoother than Charlie had expected. Originally she worried that she would have to constantly be protecting the Puppet from being seen, or that somehow the secret would always be at the risk of coming out, but it really hadn't. Her friends knew better than to come inside without forewarning and Aunt Jen never came by- largely because she didn't know that Charlie was still staying there.

Her other fear had been that as she spent more time away from the house, Sammy would become lonely and restless. That the minimal things he could do in the home would get to him and he would become unhappy. He was a human after all, even if he didn't have the body of one. He had the mentality and intelligence of an adult the same age as her. However, this never became an issue. Sammy kept himself entertained during the day and seemed content with what he had.

Sometimes she wondered if it was a relief to have the safety and routine after years of struggling. Sammy dragging her into the living room to get her to sit down and talk about her day was part of their routine, which today she was very eager to do. She tossed her jacket and bag on the armrest and sat down alongside them.

"So, something pretty interesting happened today. I have a new assignment for my robotics class," Charlie said. Sammy's eyes widened in interest and he quickly tilted his head, questioning what it was. She found herself smiling as she revealed, "An assignment to build a working animatronic prototype."

Now he looked excited. Sammy tended to get invested in her schoolwork, so they had been both waiting for the day when she would get more substantial work to bring home.

"I had a feeling you'd be interested," Charlie said. "It sounds simple enough, but I was thinking of taking it up a notch. I asked my teacher if she would accept something that was repaired or built from an already existing structure and she said yes, as long as I track my progress to show I did substantial work. I was thinking that if I tried to work from some sort of body- we'll say a _toy_ for example- then I might be able to make a fully functional, albeit kind of small animatronic."

Sammy seemed thrilled by this idea. He nodded eagerly and she could hear the light ticking of music box teeth deep in his chest. She was just as excited, "I was thinking of maybe using Ella as a base-."

The Puppet was up and gone before she could say another word. He darted upstairs so quickly that there wasn't even time to stop him, leaving her sitting there alone.

"I wasn't planning on getting started now, but alright," she said to herself. She wasn't fighting it though; she was just as excited as he was, just not enough to run upstairs.

He came back rather and breezed past the living room with Ella carried in his arms, heading directly to the garage. By time Charlie caught up to him, he had Ella face down on the table and was starting to undo the back of her dress. He pulled the fabric back to reveal a panel underneath and started to pull it up when Charlie stepped in.

"Wait, before you do anything… You can't help me," Charlie said apologetically. That excited smile dropped into a look of surprise. Which would've been comical if she didn't feel so guilty about shutting down his eager attempts to help. "I'm sorry, Sammy. It's one thing when you help me with my homework, but if I let you help me with this it's going to be like I'm cheating. I have to prove I can do this on my own."

A small, disappointed frown settled in as he released the doll and drifted around the table. She could recognize the difference between true upset and his occasional dramatics though.

"Don't start pouting. You can still help me with ideas, or like a mentor. You just have to leave the hands-on stuff to me," Charlie invited with a smile. He seemed to accept this as he smoothly turned and leaned on the end of the workbench, propping his head up with his long arms, and watching as she went to remove the panel. "And I'll need all of that I can get. It's not going to be easy trying to make a toy into a functioning-…"

That was when Charlie removed the loosened panel and instead of seeing gears or batteries like she expected, found part of an endoskeleton and some loose wires. From one look alone she was baffled to realize that Ella wasn't just a basic toy, but a small animatronic herself, just not nearly as advanced as some of the larger ones. It almost made sense considering that her father built it.

"…Or she's already one and I just got to get her moving again," Charlie finished. Sammy chimed in light laughter as she began to look around inside. There was some damage and wear on the inside, things that would need to be replaced, but Ella wasn't nearly as shabby as she imagined something this old without maintenance to be. "This almost feels like cheating. Maybe if I can figure out a way to program her to do something new, I'll fulfil the requirements and do something with a little more challenge. What do you think?"

He was on the same wavelength and went to fetch a well-worn notebook and pencil from nearby. This would be the first animatronic built in this workshop in years, and they couldn't wait to get started.

* * *

It was that same night when Charlie was roused out of a deep sleep by frantic shaking. It could've only been a few hours since she had gone to bed and she looked up to see Sammy leaning over her. There was a panicked look on his mask, one that she hadn't ever seen before. It almost frightened her.

"Sammy? What's wrong?" Charlie asked. He answered by looking upwards, his currently glowing pupils showing the motion. She followed his gaze up to the dark ceiling and saw nothing.

She didn't even have a chance to ask again before she heard what was wrong. A loud gust of wind suddenly blew into the house and caused the wood to creak loudly in protest. The storm had come, and if it wasn't for the windows rattling from the breeze alone she might've tried to alleviate his fears and return to bed. She knew immediately it was something more than a simple thunderstorm.

Charlie hurried to get out of bed and pulled on her jacket. Though she barely needed it with how warm the room felt. Like it might've felt on a sunny day and shouldn't have felt in the middle of the night, and the wind kept coming. There was a clattering noise as a branch blew off the tree and thumped down the roof and the wood of the house itself felt like it was rumbling.

"Is it a tornado?!" Charlie blurted out in a panic. In response, Sammy grabbed her wrist and pulled her to the door. She followed him quickly. "They said it was just a thunderstorm! How could this happen so fast?!"

He threw up his other arm in an exasperated shrug sort of motion. Yet he seemed to know where he was going as he led her downstairs and started to take her past the living room.

"Hold on!" She stopped him long enough to grab her backpack and phone out of the living room before joining back up. "Alright, where are we going? We can't leave in this."

Sammy shook his head and began to lead her into the garage. He released her and hurried to one of the shelves before starting to push it out of the way, she joined in on the other side and they moved the shelves over to reveal… Nothing. Just a patch of the garage wall. This seemed to confuse the puppet, who patted his hands over it like he was searching for a door.

The wind was getting so loud that now Charlie could hear it even this far into the house, and seeing that Sammy was confused about something, she physically grabbed him and pulled him from the wall.

"I think I have an idea! Come on!" she called, trying to speak over the growing noise. She pulled him back out of the garage even as he kept looking back in confusion. They returned to the living room where after brief consideration she snatched up two of the couch cushions, then beckoned Sammy to follow her into the bathroom.

"We'll get in the bathtub and cover ourself with the cushions. You get in first," Charlie explained. Sammy proceeded to give her a look of befuddlement. She rushed out another explanation, "One of the ways people protect themselves in tornados is to get in bathtubs and cover themselves with a mattress. I don't know if it really works or not, but this is the only option we have. We don't have the time to drag a mattress in here."

Convinced enough, Sammy nodded and almost reluctantly lowered into the bathtub. He then pulled into himself tightly as though climbing into the cardboard box that he frequently slept in- which he still tended to gravitate to even though they had made him up a bed with a futon pillow and plenty of blankets. A bed that might've been better used to cover the bathtub then these old couch cushions.

Charlie squeezed into the bathtub alongside him. They fit, but it was awkward and uncomfortable, made worse by the dread of the storm and the knowledge that they would be trapped there for a while.

Said storm raged on outside. They could hear it through the walls of the bathroom and rumbling along the wood of the house. Charlie got out her phone and tried to call Jessica, then John, but neither call made it through. She found that she couldn't do anything except try to wait it out. Just about then she heard an almighty crash from somewhere in the house.

"I think that was the roof," Charlie said in dismay. Sammy let out a low, slowed noise between a dial tone and a hum. A sound of depressed agreement. Neither was surprised by the sound; even with the repairs that had been done, it couldn't erase years of the house being left unattended to. Charlie supposed they were lucky the roof held at all.

A little after that, though she didn't know how long later, Sammy began to play music through the music box in his chest. Maybe it would be considered singing. She couldn't name the song but believed it was something from Swan Lake. It was almost soothing. Would've been better if not backed by the sound of the storm, but it was better than nothing. She slid further down to hug her brother protectively.

Then, finally, the winds started to die down and the house grew quiet. The devastation was over in less than an hour. They gave it a good ten or twenty minutes more before they dared to get out of the bathtub long enough to see what damage had been done.

Most of the house was intact, but the windows in the kitchen had been busted and many of the picture frames were knocked off the walls. The master bedroom had both and it looked like the closet wall had fallen in, which was a mere sign of what was to come when it led to the focal point of the damage.

Ironically, the hardest hit by the storm had been the garage they had originally taken refuge into. The roof had fallen in, knocked in by the thick branches of a tree that collapsed onto it, one of the ones around the backside of the house. The collapse of the roof had caused the floor to cave in too, spreading halfway from the door to the back. It seemed to stop in a blunt line right in front of the workbench, so Charlie could only assume that everything behind that point had been reinforced. Otherwise most of the cabinets and all of the tools would've been lost.

The large, gaping hole in the floor caught Charlie's attention immediately and she shined her light inside. To her surprise she saw that it went at least ten or twelve feet deep and led to a concrete floor down below. There was darkness around the edges too, showing that there was more space beyond where she could see.

"Is that…? There's a basement!" she exclaimed. Surprised by this finding, she crouched down beside the hole and tried to get a better look inside.

Sammy grabbed her shoulders tightly to hold her back, a worried look on his face, but Charlie took care as she tried to see what she could. One of the things she did see was part of a flight of stairs leading up the opposite wall and she guessed directly to the wall behind the shelf they had moved. She put two and two together and looked back to her brother.

"That's why you had us move the shelf? You remembered we had a basement door there?" Sammy nodded and Charlie looked across where the door would've been. Thinking back, she was starting to vaguely remember a door there, but she couldn't tell if they were real memories or her mind piecing things together. "I think I remember a door being there, but I don't remember a basement… Why would they seal it off?"

Sammy shrugged, but then instantly got a second, more suspicious look. He knew his father and he knew the secrets he carried, so he was especially wary of this unknown basement. He tugged more insistently.

"Well, there's not much we can do. We can't reach the stairs with this hole here and even then there's a wall in the way," Charlie said. She wanted to see what was down there, but it simply wasn't possible. Instead she sat back in the doorway and stared at the damage in full with a sigh. "Aunt Jen's going to have to know about this…" Sammy gave a discouraged hum. "Yeah, I feel the same way."

After a long time of just sitting there, staring at the hole, Sammy's hands on her shoulders, feeling like she was currently sinking into a hole of her own, Charlie finally stood up.

"I guess there's nothing we can do until morning… Let's go check the rest of the house and see if everything else looks okay. Maybe we can get a few more hours of sleep," she said. Sammy nodded and led the way.

A more thorough look at the rest of the house revealed minimal damage compared to the garage. The power was out, most of the curtains had fallen, mysterious glass from unknown sources collected on the floor, and neither of them were willing to check the cabinets. By some act of divine mercy, the upstairs bedroom was fine. The window had been left open and hadn't been shattered, and other than some of Sammy's blankets being blown back nothing seemed touched.

Now Charlie was glad Sammy had been so adamant in bringing Ella back to the room last night. He knelt on his bed and hugged the stiff doll close, as though trying to coddle and comfort her. Or perhaps himself.

Charlie sat down on her bed. She was wide awake now, but she knew she had to try to sleep. It was the quickest way to get to the morning, and it would be a morning that she had to be alert for. Things were about to get very tough in only a few hours, and unfortunately there was nothing she could do to stop it. Eventually she laid down on her bed, stretched out in her jacket, and stared at the ceiling until she faded off.

…But before morning could come, something woke Charlie back up. There was a strange, scratching noise coming from somewhere. Like the sound of something sharp scraping along wood. At first she thought maybe it was Sammy and looked over towards him, only to find him curled up on his bed, still clutching Ella. Apparently after the bathtub incident, the box was a little too tight for him.

The scratching noise was still there, persistently scraping it was up against. Charlie got up to go to the door before hesitating and going to the window instead. She leaned out to listen and, sure enough, she could hear the scratching from there too. Perhaps a little more dull sounding than from inside. It had to be the tree branches brushing on some part of the roof, the light breeze outside seemed to reinforce this.

Charlie shut the window quietly and then her bedroom door, locking it out of reflex, and then returned to her bed. She laid there and worried herself to sleep.

Tomorrow was another day.


	2. Rehomed

As expected, Charlie's house wasn't the only one hit by the storm, but there had been minimal damage to the town considering the ferocity of it. Or at least, that's what Marla had said when she came by to check on her. Jessica had gotten stuck at the university trying to sort through post-tornado panic, so it was nice that Marla and Carlton had drove by to check in. She couldn't say they were making things much better though.

"Yeah, I'd say you're looking at a couple grand at least," Carlton said casually as he stared over the damage to the workshop. Marla preceded to give him a sharp jab in the side with her elbow. He quickly changed course, "But you can get it fixed. It's not something they'd tear down the house over. Money's just money."

"Money's just a lot of money, and it's a house not in my name," Charlie lamented. She sighed wearily. "I'm going to have to call Aunt Jen."

"Maybe she'll understand…" Marla led in gently. She cam forward and put an arm around Charlie and a hand reassuringly on her shoulder. "You just tell her that if she gets the work done that you'll pay her back. We'll even pitch in too! This house is kind of like my long-term investment for if I ever decide to run away." She gave Charlie a smile and received a slight one back.

"How's… Sammy taking this?" Carlton dared to ask. It was a lot more awkward asking about Sammy when he knew he was somewhere listening. He swore he could feel those glowing eyes staring him down.

"He's taking it okay, all things considered… But we have another problem. I know once I call Aunt Jen and tell her about the situation, she's going to want me to come home and stay with her while we work this out. Especially once I tell her about everything that's going on. I've got to find a place for Sammy to go, because I can't leave him here and I won't take him there," Charlie explained and looked back to the others.

Both Carlton and Marla had silent stares. That finally got some amusement out of her.

"Nice faces," she teased. "Don't worry, I'm not asking either of you to take him in. No offense, but you're both too risky. I'd either be putting him with the chief of police or a house with a curious kid, and we still can't risk people seeing him move… And I don't think Jen's is going to be much better." Charlie pursed her lips at that thought, but then shrugged. "I'll figure it out later."

Sammy had been listening in from the office doorway. He and Charlie had already discussed this so it was no surprise that she was bringing it up with her friends. Though he was relieved to hear that neither of them were offering their place to stay. While he knew he needed to go somewhere- Charlie insisted he didn't and he wasn't going to argue with her- he didn't really trust anyone enough to go with them. Especially not with the redhead. He could go a lifetime without being stuck in that basement again.

With a wispy sigh, Sammy turned from the door and hovered over to the desk. All his neatly stacked drawings had been blown all over the room. This place that almost became like a sanctuary of memories was now just another messy reminder of the storm.

He started to stack them back together when he brushed a drawing of a familiar face. He pulled it free from the others and studied it, and then his smile returned in full. Sammy had an idea.

Carlton and Marla stuck around for a while longer to help her get the house a little more put together. Specifically, helping her get the glass up off the floor, put up the curtains and the pictures that weren't broken, and other tasks that were a help but couldn't make up for the severe damage in the garage. Charlie assured them both she would be fine as she led them to the front door and gave Marla a hug goodbye. They walked out and she shut the door behind them-.

Only to find Sammy standing behind it. She jumped with a slight gasp but recovered fast enough to give an unamused frown. "I thought you were going to stop doing that."

The Puppet gave an apologetic tilt of his head before eagerly offering her the drawing clasped in his grasp. She took and looked at it.

"Schmidt?" Sammy nodded eagerly. "I'm sure he's okay. I can call him if you want and check in just to make sure," she offered, assuming that was what was wrong. He shook his head and pointed to the picture a little more insistently, then pointed between him and the man on the picture. Now she started to catch on. "You and Schmidt- Wait, you're saying that you want to… Want me to ask Schmidt if you can stay with him?"

He nodded eagerly and she seemed a little skeptical, pushing the door closed the rest of the way and leaning on it with crossed arms.

"I don't know about this. He might know about Freddy's, but he hasn't exactly had good experiences around living animatronics… And we don't know him that well," Charlie said. She had never been this suspicious of Schmidt, but the thought of having Sammy stay with what was a stranger made her uneasy. "What if he tells someone? Or worse, what if he has me bring you over just to try and deactivate you?"

Sammy hesitated only a moment, looking off to the corner thoughtfully, and then seemingly regained his confidence. He pointed down at the Schmidt picture before reaching up and quickly clasping his neck aggressively. _"If Schmidt attacks me-."_ He then released his neck and made a mock throat cutting gesture with his fingers. _"-I'll kill him."_ But from the particularly smug look, she didn't take the threat seriously.

"I don't see how that could have any lasting consequences," Charlie said sarcastically. Then finally caved with a sigh. "I'll call him and lead in that direction and see how it goes. Okay?" Again, Sammy eagerly nodded.

Charlie had to fish Schmidt's number out of the kitchen drawer where it had been spared from the storm. Then, sitting at the dining room table, she quickly dialed the number. Sammy listened from beside her.

"Hello, hello?" Schmidt answered dryly. He sounded half exhausted, which wasn't a good way to start out this precarious conversation.

"Hey, it's Charlie. I-I was wondering how you're doing." She winced at her own stutter. If she was this nervous talking to him then how was she supposed to handle Jen?

"Hey, Charlie. Long time no word. Doing fine, survived the tornado- even if my apartment looks like the point of impact. How've you been holding up?"

"Fine, up until last night. The house suffered storm damage and I'm going to have to figure out a way to get my aunt on board to fix it." She took a deep breath. "…That's kind of why I called you. See, I might be staying somewhere else until the roof is repaired, and my brother needs somewhere to stay."

"Huh. Sorry to break it to you, but if you're looking for someone with a guest room- Wait, your brother? I thought your brother went missing. This is another brother?"

"No, I mean Sammy," Charlie confessed.

"…The brother who disappeared?"

"That's him… I found him. He's at home with me now."

"You _found him_? So, after all this time, he just showed up-? There's something you're not telling me." _S_ chmidt caught on as quickly as she expected. Especially when he added, "Alright, what's wrong with Sammy?"

"He's…" Charlie looked to Sammy before turning aside and lowering her voice. "He's not human anymore."

"…Ask a stupid question,"Schmidt muttered. "So, just to clarify, he IS an animatronic?"Charlie agreed with a quick 'right'. "And he's living in your house, right now."This time a 'yes'. "Okay… And with my history, where exactly did you get the impression that there was any way I wanted to be anywhere near an animatronic again? Or that it's a good idea to go telling people he's there. Do you know what could happen if someone like Fazbear Entertainment found out you had one of their bots? If they weren't, you know, completely defunct?"

"I know it's a risk, but I knew you wouldn't tell… I have too much dirt on you," Charlie lightly joked. He huffed without amusement. "I didn't want to bring you into this but I was low on options… And, uh, this might freak you out a little, but it was Sammy's idea to ask you."

"He knows who I am?"he asked in surprise. He quickly changed tone, _"_ Which one is he? Freddy? Bonnie? Is it Foxy? I always thought Foxy was watching me."

"It's Lefty. Or he was Lefty."

"Oh, I _knew_ he was watching me."

"You have every right to say no. I know you've been through so much with Freddy's and it's crazy of me to ask you to take one in, but Sammy is different. Trust me, I've seen what animatronics are capable of. My friends and I were attacked by some for no reason other than us being in the wrong place at the wrong time. I've been living with Sammy for months and I can vouch that he's not like them."

"It's not that I don't trust you, Charlie. You've been honest with me up to this point, but I'm a danger magnet. I walk out the front door and there's a good chance I'm winding up in a hospital. If it wasn't for my crushing debt, I'd probably be a shut-in by now. You understand."

"Right. Never mind, I'll find someone else. Or somewhere else… Just to be clear, you won't tell anyone, will you? You said yourself that it's important that nobody finds out about Sammy."

"Not a soul. Not that anyone would believe me anyways. Good luck with that, sorry I can't be more help."

"No problem. Just glad to hear you're okay. Talk to you later, Schmidt."

"…You know what?"Charlie perked and for a second, she thought maybe he was about to change his mind, but instead he said, "Call me Mike."

"Mike? That's your real name?" Charlie got a slight smile. "Seems like a popular name."

"In the Freddy business, yes. For clarification, no connection to any other Mikes, Michaels, etcetera."It wouldn't be the first time they had talked about Michael since the fire, since they had come to the conclusion that it was he who had been the elusive manager, but in the few phone calls they had they spoke of him only in brief references. "So there. Now we have real dirt on one another."

"If you say so," she said. "See you." Then she ended the call, gave a tired sigh, and looked towards Sammy. "Looks like we're going to need a plan B."

Sammy seemed disappointed by the turn of events but was willing to compromise. He collapsed onto the other dining room chair limply, then dragged his arm up to grab a pen she left out from earlier and scribbled a note on the edge of the Mike drawing, then showed it to her.

" _Hide at Aunt Jen's."_

"I… Don't think that's a good idea," Charlie admitted. She looked down at the table almost shamefully, rubbing her hands together. "I don't think Jen's going to take the news about the house well, and I'm sort of afraid that things might start coming out if it doesn't. Not to mention that you'd pretty much be stuck in a closet. You shouldn't have to go through that." Her fingers laced and tightened. "You wouldn't like it."

The Puppet hummed and loosely played with the pen in his three fingers. Charlie separated her hands to tap her own on the table.

"…Okay, Carlton and Marla are both out, but what about John or Jessica? Lamar's parents are a little… They're nice, but I think they'd notice something's up. Besides, I don't think I could convince Lamar to do it. John might. His place is small, but I'm sure-." But Sammy shook his head. "And Jessica's dorm would be as bad as staying in my room at Jen's…"

She wasn't surprised in his lack of interest in staying with her friends. Sammy listened to stories about them and observed them when they were here, but he didn't take interest in meeting them and became very defensive if they so much as tried to climb the stairs. Charlie could just feel the twitching dread that resonated off him whenever they came too far into his comfort zone.

Finally, Sammy gave a sound like a sigh, though hollow and metal. He turned back to Charlie and pointed a hand to himself, she looked to him attentively, and then he pointed straight down. _"I'll stay here."_

"I don't want you to have to stay alone here," Charlie insisted. Even if he acted fine about it now, she could tell that he didn't want it either. It was one thing staying the day apart, but night was something entirely different. Sammy barely could stand being in a separate room once night fell, and he became restless from midnight onward. She couldn't leave him here with that.

But he was adamant about it. He pointed to her, tapped the edge of his mouth, and then dropped his finger straight down underneath Jen's name. " _You talk to Aunt Jen."_ Then gave a sweeping gesture towards the house. She wasn't entirely sure what it meant except that it was about the house. Maybe something about her talking to Jen about the house. _"Something something our house."_

"Sammy, come on. You don't want to be here alone," Charlie said.

He stared at her for a moment before giving a somewhat carefree shrug. She read a distinct, _"Well, what are you going to do?"_

And for a long moment Charlie didn't know what she was going to do. Until she finally made her decision and picked back up the cellphone and redialed. After a few moments, there came an answer.

"Hello?"

"I'll pay you fifty dollars."

That managed to lead to a long silence. If there were two things that Charlie knew for certain, it was that Sammy would not be a threat to Mike, and that Mike very desperately needed money. The last thing she wanted was to twist his arm, but these circumstances were dire. She waited with bated breath until finally-.

"How long would he be here?"

Finally, there was headway. "If all goes well, only one night. Maybe less." Mike gave a tired groan over the phone. Charlie tried to make it easier for him and continued, "How about I bring Sammy over now for you to see him? It's the middle of the day, your neighbors are going to be all awake, and I can show you that he's safe. And if you still aren't sure, then we can just forget about it. How about that?"

"…Fine. Alright, fine, yeah. I need the money," he said defeatedly. "At least if he turns on me, I'll be able to watch TV while I'm being crushed to death." He then gave her quick directions to his apartment.

The relief Charlie felt was just enough to override the guilt for coercing him into this. "Thank you so much, Mike. You're not going to regret this. I promise it's totally safe."

"Gee, where have I heard that?" he asked dryly. "Just bring him over, and make sure he's up to speed on the whole not killing me thing."

"I'll make sure of it. Thanks again." They ended the call and she took a moment to get her thoughts together. Then turned to Sammy and said, "…I probably should've offered him less upfront." Sammy chimed a little and mask shifted like raising a brow, still beaming wide. "I don't trust that look. If I find out this is an elaborate scheme to prank your secret mortal enemy or something, you're going to be paying me that fifty back."

Sammy waved his hands in denial; still playful, still smiling. She could tell that he was relieved though and she was too knowing that she didn't have to leave him alone here. She stood from the table. "Well, let's get you over there. Then I can talk to Jen and see where we go from there." He nodded and went to get his sketch book, not needing to back more than that.

Charlie grabbed her bag and helped get Sammy fully covered in the throw blanket. It would be the first time taking him outside since they had gone to see what was left of the pizzeria and the first time taking him close to where people would be. It wouldn't be a big, empty parking lot at dusk, but an apartment complex in broad daylight. They could manage but they would have to be careful.

She opened the door, started to usher Sammy through, and then promptly shoved him back inside when she found John coming up the front steps. She stepped ahead with a tight smile.

"Err- Hey stranger! How long have you been out here?" Charlie greeted in a much less awkward manner. He noticed the weird moment, but still gave her a smile, one hiding a concerned look.

"Just pulled in. Carlton told me about what happened and I came to check in and see how you were holding up," John said. He noticed her blocking the door and gave a quizzical look. "Everything okay?"

"Yes, just… Would you mind turning around for five minutes?" she asked with an uncomfortable smile. That confused look remained, but he got a touch of an amused look and did as asked.

Charlie opened the door and began to quickly usher her brother, who remained floating in place, crouching down with the blanket still on. She had to physically grab his arm and pull him out, though taking care to lead him to the car. She could feel how rigid he was under the blanket and sympathetically patted his back. He slid into the car and knelt in the floorboard, cocooning himself in the blanket as she shut the door.

"Thanks for that. I'm taking Sammy over to Schmidt's to stay with him while I sort out all this with Jen," Charlie explained. John turned back to her and briefly glanced at the car window.

"Nobody else could take him?" he asked.

"Not really."

"You know, if you two needed someplace to stay, you could always come to my place. I know Sammy's not exactly comfortable with me, but we could work something out," he offered. He got a coy smile and added, "And before you get the wrong idea, I'm fine crashing on the couch if you two want to take the bed."

Somehow this innocent suggestion still caused Charlie to feel a little more flustered than she would've liked. That just seemed like a border she was not ready to cross yet, having her would-be boyfriend see her in the morning, possibly in her night clothes, with bedhead and disheveled. Not ready to breach that gap yet, but that was fine because she didn't need to.

"That sounds great, but I don't think I'm going to have a choice in the matter. Whenever Jen gets worried about me, she insists I come home. That's pretty much the whole reason she pulled me out of school and since I'm going to be giving her some- uh- troubling news, I expect the same thing. That's the whole reason I'm taking Sammy to Schmidt's. Apparently, they have a little bit of a history and he's got the space."

"The option's always open if you change your mind," John assured. They stood alongside each other and looked back at the house. Other than some of the branches of the collapsed tree poking out, it was hard to see the true extent of the damage from here. John eventually broke the silence, "I was worried about you. You were right in the worst of it."

"I know, Marla told me."

"You could've called. I could've helped you out."

"I've kind of been in panic mode since 2AM. Calling you would've required a little more brain power than that," Charlie quipped. She reached out to take his hand and squeezed. "Don't worry about me, I'm fine."

"You being fine never stopped me in the past," John teased back. He separated their hands to instead put an arm around her, leaning in to kiss her on the cheek. Such a simple gesture sent light flutters through her stomach and a comfortable warmth over her skin.

"I don't know. If this is how cuddly you get when you're worried, maybe I should keep you on your toes," Charlie said. John chuckled before holding her a little tighter. Charlie wasn't sure whether to return the gesture or what to do with herself, but the comfort was needed, and she stayed like that as long as she could. Only drawing back once she knew she had to get moving. "I guess I should go."

"You don't want to keep Schmidt waiting. It's not every day he gets to babysit a mime," John said as he released her. She playfully rolled her eyes.

"It helps that he's getting fifty dollars to do it… Yes, I offered too much, I know." He walked her back to her car and she opened her door and tossed her bag into the passenger's seat before hesitating. He still looked worried, so she had to say something. "…I'll try to call you later if I get a chance. I'm not entirely sure how this is going to go with Jen, but I'd like to meet up if we can. I might need rescuing."

"I think I can manage that. You know where I'll be," John said. He winked at her and she playfully waved him off before getting into the car to leave. She let out a breath she didn't know she was holding.

It wasn't until Charlie quickly glanced into the backseat that she noticed Sammy was peering out from under the blanket. She was about to apologize for taking so long when she noticed his obvious smirk.

"Don't give me that look, he was worried about us. And he was the only one who offered to take you in without a bribe," Charlie defended. She turned away before her cheeks could heat up, fueled by the playful chimes of laughter in the backseat. She focused on driving and tried to ignore him.

Schmidt's apartment was about halfway across town but wasn't what Charlie had pictured. She expected closely set doors lining a few floors connected by outside stairs, but instead found three identical brick buildings. They were all only a single story, surrounding by a few trees and bushes, with some having flowers growing out front. The one he told her to go to had minimal décor, but the grass was clean cut.

Charlie parked alongside what must've been Mike's car before turning off her own. "I'm going to go make sure this is the right place," she said. Sammy nodded, and she got out, headed up the walkway and steps to the concrete porch, and knocked on the door before she could second guess herself. The door opened to reveal a very exhausted looking Mike Schmidt.

"Oh hey. Didn't expect you this soon," he said. He then glanced back towards the car and furrowed his brows. "Where is he?"

"In the car. I just wanted to make sure I was at the right place before I brought him inside."

"Huh. He's a lot smaller than I thought he was." Mike's shoulders seemed to loosen at this realization. He propped open the door with his foot. "You can go ahead and bring him in."

It was clear that there was nothing sketchy going on so Charlie went to go do so. She kept a close eye out as she escorted Sammy out. He stayed so low to the ground that the throw blanket dragged along it, so there was little chance of anyone seeing anything underneath. Still, it was risky if anyone took notice, so she rushed to guide him up to the front door. Mike seemed much less concerned.

"The apartment next door is empty, don't worry about it," he said as he watched the blanket be led into the house. He shut the door behind them, the blinds and curtains already drawn. Mike got straight down to business, "Alright, so I'm going to need to know exactly how he works and what sets him off-." It was at this moment that Sammy abruptly shed the blanket and unfurled himself, to Charlie's slight surprise. Mike staring silently for a few seconds before asking, "Any way I can call this off?"

"Schm-Mike, he's fine. I know he doesn't look as… Unassumingly dangerous as some of the other animatronics, but he's completely aware. He's more human than any of the others," Charlie reassured. She looked to Sammy to back him up only to find the Puppet floating stiffly and staring directly at the man. She added after a beat, "He freezes up a little when people look at him."

"Same." Mike stared pointedly back before getting an uneasy look. "Yeah, that's definitely Lefty. How exactly was he able to fit inside that bear?"

"The same way he fit under the blanket. Anyways, here's what you need to know. Like I said, Sammy is completely aware and thinks and feels just like a human would. There isn't anything that will outright set him off, so just try to be nice to him and everything will go fine. And won't leave the apartment so don't be afraid of him wandering off while you're asleep."

"If I sleep," Mike corrected. "But if he's not a flight risk then why am I watching him?"

Charlie tensed and considered her next words. She looked back towards Sammy to see if he was listening and saw that he was drifting around and looking at the apartment.

They stood in the small living room and from it there were two doors leading out, one into a kitchen and the other to a hallway where a bathroom door could be seen. It was rather cozy. Still, she knew he was listening in by how close he stayed. She lowered her voice to a near whisper before answering.

"Because someone put him inside Lefty and tried to set him on fire. He can't be alone."

Apparently, that was enough of an explanation as Mike's features soften from questioning back to tired. Charlie took this time to pull out the money she had stuffed into her pocket earlier. She recounted it quickly and handed it over.

"Thanks. You know I wouldn't be taking this if I didn't need it," Mike said, pocketing it without counting. "Or, you know, might've taken less."

"How are things?" Charlie asked with genuine concern. She was starting to notice exactly how weary he looked.

"Not so good, actually. Nobody's looking for a full-time worker in this town and my car is two miles away from breaking down on the side of the road. I've even started looking for nightguard jobs again; no dice."

"I'm sorry to hear that… But this isn't like a handout. You're doing both of us a big favor here, and I rather pay and know Sammy's safe than have him alone at the house or hiding in a closet somewhere."

"So that means I _can't_ lock him in the closet if he gets rowdy?" Mike flashed her a playful smirk.

" _Oh, they're going to get along just fine."_ Charlie started to turn away only to turn back and add, "Just to forewarn you, sometimes he pops up when you're not expecting him." That smirk changed into a partial grimace and she faced her brother again. "Alright, Sammy. If you think you're going to be okay here then I should get going. The sooner I see Aunt Jen, the better."

Sammy's face didn't change- probably because they weren't alone- but he spun to face her rather quickly. His empty hand began to tighten, fingers twisting together anxiously; suddenly he was beginning to regret his decision to come here. Feeling the change, Charlie reached out for his shoulders to comfort him.

"Hey. If all goes well, I might be back to pick you up tonight. The house might be safe enough to stay in if we're both there… Or maybe a hotel's the way to go. Either way, you're going to hear from me. I'll call as soon as I figure out what we're going to do," she reassured him. Sammy smile seemed to become a little more honest and he nodded. She brought him into a hug that he returned with a chime. "Love you, Sammy."

Sammy trilled lovingly as they pulled apart. Charlie headed for the door, passing by Mike who had been watching with a slightly bewildered look. She smiled and said, "Take care of my brother, Mike. He's all I've got."

"I'll see what I can do," Mike agreed. He followed her to the door and watched her make her way down the steps before calling out, "Before you go…" She turned back quizzically and he lowered his voice. "…Take care out there. Just because Freddy's is gone doesn't make this town any safer. There's been cops out everywhere today."

"Probably looking for looters. I'll be careful," Charlie agreed.

Mike nodded and went to shut the door. Only to suddenly jump back from it with a quick, "Sheeze!" Charlie was startled for a second before having to suppress a snicker once she realized Sammy was probably waiting behind the door. Mike muttered an exasperated, "Just kill me now," before finally shutting it.

Charlie should've felt relief in this moment. Now she wouldn't have to worry about Sammy while she spoke to Jen and tried to get everything figured out. Yet instead, she felt jarringly alone standing out here. Sammy was fine and she would see him soon enough; it should've been just like when she left him for the day, but for some reason it wasn't.

" _Maybe Sammy wasn't the one afraid of splitting us up,"_ Charlie suggested to herself. She returned to her car and got inside. _"I can't start getting weird about this now. I've got somewhere to be…"_

After stilling her nerves, she took her cellphone out to call her aunt. She stared at it for a long moment before putting it back and starting up the car. News like this would have to be given in person.

" _Just kill me now."_


	3. Dispute

Jen lived outside of the city of Hurricane in a place known as Silver Reef. Named for a ghost town located alongside it, there were few houses built there, and they were spaced apart and located on empty roads. Charlie had thought of the house as being lonely even when she was a child. As much as she loved her aunt, she had been eager to leave for college and try to regain some form of socialization.

Now here she was again, alone and on a mission to deliver news that she was sure would come back to bite her. Charlie took a few moments to brace herself as she got out of her car and walked up to the front door. Jen's jeep was still in the driveway, so she knew that she was here and that there was no turning back. Awkwardly, she knocked on the door like a stranger instead of letting herself in, then tried faking a smile.

Jen was her father's sister and had been Charlie's caretaker from childhood up until she left the house. She had been good to her, but strict, teaching her to grow up faster than her parents probably would've and making sure she was self-reliant as young as she could be. Never had Charlie doubted that Jen loved her, but she had never felt like a true parent. Even now Charlie felt out of place at the house.

When Jen answered and saw her, her face broke into a warm smile. "Charlie! You didn't say you were coming by," she said and embraced her. They had talked on the phone that morning, during which Charlie gave her the most minimal of details and left it at her being safe. Jen drew back with a smile. "Come to check on the house, I suppose? Make sure it's still standing?"

"Funny you should mention that," Charlie said tensely. She hated seeing her aunt in such a good mood and knowing she was about to ruin it, but stalling would only make it worse. "Actually, I wanted to come tell you… There's been some damage at the house. The old house, I mean. A tree fell on it."

Jen sighed but didn't seem concerned. "Well, that was bound to happen. Some of those trees around it needed trimming years ago. How bad is it? Do I need to call a tree cutter?"

"It's a little worse than that…" Charlie watched as Jen's nonchalant look became a little more quizzical. "It was one of the bigger trees in the back and it fell full-force on the roof of the garage… And collapsed part of it and the floor underneath it," she rushed out. She watched as her aunt's eyes slowly widened. "But before you ask, it was just the garage. The rest of the house is fine." She didn't need to mention windows right now.

Jen dropped her head into her hand and covered her eyes in dismay. "I knew this was going to happen," she said wearily. "That house has been falling apart for years. I knew one of these days there was going to be something that we couldn't patch fix." She dropped her hand tiredly before managing a smile and gesturing Charlie inside. "Come on in. I'm going to have to call on the insurance."

This almost seemed like a positive step, but Charlie couldn't be too sure that this meant Jen was really planning to repair it. Especially when after thirty minutes of waiting she was still on hold with the company. Finally, Jen decided to take it into her own hands, got into her jeep with Charlie, and began to drive to their closest office, which would be in St. George.

But not before stopping at the house to get some pictures of the damage. Charlie followed her like she was walking on eggshells, waiting anxiously for the moment Jen would notice the changes in the house and realize she had been staying there. Much to her surprise, she didn't. She didn't go into the living room and see the new couch, and she hadn't even noticed the reasonably new paintjob on the house.

Jen was a woman on a mission: getting in, taking the pictures, and getting out. Charlie had never been more relieved. Though it was short lived, because as they drove to St. George, she knew she would have to find some way to broach the conversation. It was time to confess to where she had been staying, but she stayed silent as they headed into the office.

Unfortunately, there wasn't much help there either. The office was swamped with work from other homes and lots that have been damaged, so while Jen was eventually able to file a claim, there was no resolution before they left. They had gotten one step ahead but now it was just another waiting game. If only that made things less tense; it didn't.

They had gotten back to the house late enough that Jen insisted Charlie stay for dinner and as expected had offered for her to stay the night. Not wanting to upset her, Charlie agreed without question, and while her aunt prepped dinner she paced in the other room and mentally went over the words she would say.

Dinner was delicious, as she expected it to be. Though Charlie didn't have much of an appetite. Apparently, Jen didn't either because she was more interested in catching up.

"So, how have things been? How's school?" Jen asked. She had worked off all the frustrations of the house while cooking and was now in a better mood.

"It's going good. I have a new assignment I'm working. I'm supposed to be building a basic animatronic model, but I'm going to try and aim for a fully functional prototype."

"You really are your father's daughter," Jen said with a wistful smile. She didn't sound displeased though, which was a relief considering that originally she hadn't been keen on her niece's choice in major. "You'll have to let me see it when you're finished. Oh, and how is Jessica? You told her you were staying, right?"

"Oh… Yeah, I did. Sort of. I told her that there was a chance I'd be spending the night, so she's not going to wait up. She's studying Forensics but I don't think she's narrowed down a major yet. She's in between now."

"That's wonderful! She was always such a bright girl. I'm not sure if she'll find much work in town, but a job like that could take her anywhere," Jen said encouragingly. "I'm so glad you two reconnected."

"I am too. It really changed my life." There were those eggshells again, now evolved into thin ice that she was tiptoeing across. Jen thought she was living with Jessica, she wasn't. Jen thought she stopped by the house and saw the damage like that, she didn't. Charlie was going to have to correct all of this, but she still couldn't. She just kept pushing it off.

They talked about other things. Eventually they had gotten off the topic of Charlie's life and onto Jen's anecdotes, and by time dinner was over they had progressed into talking about other storms they had seen or heard of. Charlie tried to strengthen her resolve as she did the dishes, but by time she back with Aunt Jen in the living room she lost her nerve again.

The evening drones on and Charlie was already growing tired from the lack of sleep the night before. Not having much to distract her anyway, she decided to make it an early night. It would even give her a little extra time to call and check in on Sammy from the safety of her bedroom.

"I think I'm going to head to bed. I'm heading to the university early tomorrow to make up for missing my classes today," Charlie said. Jen looked up from the book she had been reading- she wasn't too fond of television, so she had retreated into her book for the last ten minutes- and gave an assuring smile.

"Sounds good. I might be heading to bed myself soon. Sleep tight, Charlie," she said. Charlie headed out of the living room towards her old bedroom.

" _It's fine. I'll just tell Jen tomorrow about what's going on,"_ she reassured herself, only to stop outside the door suddenly. _"…But what if she talks to the insurance company before I tell her and decides on something drastic? Like just… Giving up the property?"_ After a moment, she shook her head. _"No, that's insane. Even if someone does call that quickly, which they won't, she wouldn't decide on that so quickly. Jen doesn't like the house but she has money invested in it… But enough to get over how much she hates it?"_

Charlie continued fighting with herself as she crept towards her old bedroom. It wasn't until she opened the door and stared inside at the room she spent most of her life in that she suddenly decided. Within moments, she was striding back into the living room.

"Uh… Aunt Jen? I wanted to ask you… What do you think we're going to do with the house? We're going to use the insurance to pay for the repairs, right?" Charlie tentatively asked. Jen took a deep breath before setting her book aside with a sigh.

"Honestly, Charlie, I don't know what to do with the house. Just being there today brought up… Unpleasant memories, and that's how it's going to be every time we go there. For the last few years, I stopped showing the house because of its condition. Nobody would by it when it was just lived in, I doubt we would've gotten offers once it fell into disrepair… But now looking at that damage, I think it's time to just let go and move on. I can sign the house over to the realtor company and they can sell it themselves."

"What? No, we can't do that!" Charlie protested. "I know that the house has a lot of emotional baggage attached, but it's still a part of us. It's still my home, I don't want to give that up. I can get a job to help pay for the repairs that the insurance doesn't cover. It's just money!"

"I'm not going to stand by and let you sink your future into that house, Charlie," Jen said more firmly. "I know you are attached to it. It's your childhood home, nothing can change that, but it's not worth going through the pain of the repairs. I already have to pay monthly just to keep the lights on when nobody's living there."

"Well… I'm not paying board fees anymore. I could pay for the electricity and anything else. If you just let me, I'm sure I could get at least five hundred dollars together by the end of the week," Charlie promised. She already tried to think of ways to scrape the money together- sell the TV, have the yard sale, get a job, two if she had to- but her heart sunk as Jen insistently shook her head.

"I won't let you do that. Charlie, we've been through this. Look at you, you're going to school, you have friends, and someday you will move far away from here. How would you buy a new house if you're stuck supporting this one? Something like this is just going to hold you back." Her face grew softer. "Once you have a house of your own it will be just as much home as this one was, if not more. I promise you."

"Aunt Jen," Charlie said seriously and without any hesitation. "I've been living in the house."

"…What?" Jen's brows furrowed in surprised confusion. "What are you talking about?"

"I haven't been living with Jess. Jess has been living in the dorms at the university. I've been living in the house since I went back to visit it months ago… The whole reason I've been cleaning up isn't to sell it or just to get closure, it's because I want to live there," Charlie confessed. Jen looked utterly shocked at the reveal and her niece felt guilty, averting her gaze off to the floor. "I'm sorry, Aunt Jen. I know I shouldn't have lied to you, but I was afraid of what you would do when you found out."

It certainly was a heavy reveal. Not only did Charlie confess to lying to her and going behind her back into the house, along with orchestrating a narrative for months about it, but she was inadvertently revealing that she was there during the storm as well. She wouldn't deny it, she would just wait for a response. Her aunt still staring with wide eyes and no expression.

Jen broke the long silence with finality. "I'm selling the house."

Charlie's eyes shot up from the ground. "What? No, wait! Aunt Jen, please!"

"I'm sorry, but I've made up my mind," Jen said firmly. She closed her book and set it aside. "I won't have you get sucked back into that life, Charlie. I made a promise to your father and I plan to stick by it."

"You can't! I love that house! That's my home!" Charlie exclaimed in alarm. "I know I lied and that was terrible. I went against your wishes and betrayed your trust, but please, Aunt Jen, please think about this!"

"This isn't a punishment, Charlie. I'm doing this for your own good."

"…For my own good?" Suddenly a bitterness welled up in Charlie that she didn't realize existed. "For my own good, is… is that what you call leaving me in the dark for years about what happened at the pizzeria, or where Mom went? Encouraging me to grow up quick but then not trusting me to make any of my own decisions? Was that for my good or yours?"

Jen was almost as surprised by the outburst as she was by the previous reveal, though she recovered enough to defend herself. "I did what I could to keep you safe, Charlie." That's what caused her to snap.

"All these years, I have felt completely isolatedfrom _everyone!_ " Charlie yelled. "You took me out of school, you took me away from my friends, and then you didn't even have the guts to tell me that the reason you were hiding me was because the man who kidnapped Sammy was still out there! Or that he was Dad's business partner- he had been in our house! Sammy and I played with his children!"

"I didn't want you to be held back by it, Charlie!" Jen yelled back, finally raising her voice. "I didn't want you to get so stuck in the past that you couldn't move on! That was exactly what happened to your father. He couldn't get over losing Sammy and it ruined his life, and I won't let that happen to you!"

"And I'm tired of being punished because of the bad choices Dad made!" Charlie cried. "Why can't you trust me when I tell you what I want?! Why is it never enough?!"

"Charlie, that _is_ enough! I'm not fighting with you about this!"

"No, it is _not_ enough! That house is the last thing I have of my old life! It's my home, not Dad's! He's the one that chose to leave, I didn't! But if you sell that house- if you don't even give me the choice- then I will! I will never step in this house again!" The fight cut off to silence, Charlie panting from her yelling, Jen's shock returning. In that moment Charlie finished, "I'm leaving in the morning. I won't be back."

She turned and stormed out of the living room. Jen called after her and even followed a short way, but then let her niece retreat to her old bedroom. Once inside, Charlie slammed the door shut and fell against it.

All at once a wave of regret rushed over her. She couldn't believe the things she said or the ultimatum she had given, and knew she had to be out of line. Jen loved her, she was trying to protect her, she wanted what was best for her, but years of suppressed anger burst out. All the frustration Charlie had towards her father and this situation spilled out in one messy display, and now she lost her chance to reason with Jen.

Charlie slid to the floor and sat there with her head in her hands. _"What now? What am I supposed to do now?"_ she asked herself. Nothing, she realized. There was nothing she could do. It was all over.

For a long time, Charlie sat there on the floor with silent thoughts and a sour twisting in her stomach. Part of her wanted to go back out and apologize to Jen, but the other still felt betrayed and wouldn't budge from this spot. She felt angry, hurt, and alone. So alone in this bedroom, just like she had been as a child. She could remember long nights sitting in here and feeling like something was missing.

Maybe it had been Sammy. The thought of him suddenly reminded her that she hadn't called him yet and she got out her phone to do so. She was able to remember Mike's number, which was a relief as she left the paper that had it in her bad which was still in her car. She dialed it up and waited for an answer, hoping for something to save her from this painful situation.

Thankfully, Mike answered like he always did, "Hello, hello?" Someday she would have to ask why he did that.

"Hey, it's me," Charlie said, forcing a cheery tone and hoping it didn't sound fake. "Just calling to check in. How's Sammy holding up?"

"I take back what I said earlier. I earned every cent of that fifty bucks," Mike said matter-of-factly.

Charlie gave a sympathetic hiss and asked, "That bad?"

"It wouldn't be if he didn't keep jumping me all over the house. You would think he would stop after it stopped getting a rise out of me, but no. He just started switching up places. I've got this cabinet beside my fridge- What? What are you- Hey, would you- Be careful with that!" Then a more distant call of. "You break it, you buy it, Stripes."

She only had a moment to question this before she heard shuffling on the phone and then a chiming on the other side. Obviously, Sammy had stolen it and was now nearly trilling with excitement to hear his sister. At least one of them was in a good mode, it seemed to immediately loosen up the tightness in her chest to hear him.

"You could've probably done that with a little more tact," she teased.

Sammy gave a dismissive noise and chimed again. The only reason she could tell he was questioning her was through its tone, but she knew what he was asking.

"I talked to Aunt Jen. Things… Went about as well as expected. I don't know what's going to happen." Sammy was silent and Charlie jumped to add, "But it's okay! It'll be okay, we'll figure something out. I'm going to be staying here tonight."

Sammy was relieved to hear that, but it was hard not to hear something else in Charlie's voice. There must've been a fight from the melancholy undertone she was trying to hide. He wished he could do more but trapped on this side of the phone he had no way to comfort her. He was barely able to communicate with her without his hand signals. Ringing would have to suffice.

"I'm going to head to school tomorrow, but as soon as I finish classes I'll come by and we'll figure out where we're going to stay. At this point it might just be worth closing the garage door, considering the workshop a lost cause, and going on business as usual. At least we'll be home," Charlie offered. Unless something else collapsed. "Just go a little easier on Mike, okay? I'm pretty much stuck here all night."

The Puppet gave an agreeing sort of chime before stretching his arm out and offering the phone back to Mike. The man took it back with an unenthused look and raised it to his ear.

"So, what's the plan?"

"I'll be back tomorrow to figure it out. If you could just keep him tonight like planned, I'd really appreciate it. I told him to ease up."

"Oh yeah, I'm sure that'll help," Mike said sarcastically. He paused a moment before clarifying, "I'll keep an eye on him. I've got to admit, I prefer him squeezing into my furniture over him trying to squeeze into my office and kill me. He's not a killer, I'll give you that." He watched as Sammy turned to look at him and watched with that intense gaze. "Hold on, he's giving me that look again."

Charlie chuckled a little and assured, "It'll be fine. Thanks again for this, Mike. I'm… Really glad he's not over here." She brushed back her hair tiredly with a sigh.

"I'm taking it things didn't go so well?" he asked sympathetically. He got a vague 'not exactly' in return. "Sorry to hear that, kid. Let her cool down for the night and try again in the morning. Might have better luck."

"Let's hope. Talk to you tomorrow." With that they hung up and Charlie was back to being alone in this bedroom.

She finally got up from the floor and moved to her closet to look and see if she had left any night clothes behind when she moved out. Unfortunately, the only clothes left were ones she had grown out of but had too much of an attachment with to throw away. Which meant she was going to be sleeping in what she was wearing unless she was willing to risk seeing Jen to go get her bag, which felt too uncomfortable right now.

Not to mention that she didn't know how she was even going to sleep. She was wide awake and wired, not sure if lying down in bed would do anything more than have her tossing and turning. Even if sleep would be quick means of escape… Of course, there was another escape route she considered.

Sitting on the foot of the bed with her phone in her hand, she remembered John's offer from earlier. All she had to do was call and he would probably come by. They could meet up outside and he could assure her it was all going to be okay and even if it wasn't, the tingling warmth would convince her it was. Maybe she could even take up that offer to sleep on his couch. Probably not, but it was an option, a choice that she was given and that she could make without any noticeable consequences.

She convinced herself and quickly dialed up John's number. Then she waited as it rang, and rang, and by the third and fourth rings her hopes were dashed. It seemed a little early for him to be in bed, though she knew he had a part-time job now and typically got up early. Or he was just in the shower, in which case she was starting to second guess calling back. Eventually the prompt came for her to leave a message.

"Hey, John! It's me, Charlie. I'm just at Jen's right now. I'm staying the night tonight, but I won't be tomorrow so maybe we can meet up and do something. I just… Didn't want you to worry! Its just been a long day with things, insurance things, you wouldn't be interested. So, umm, good night and I'll talk to you tomorrow!"

Charlie ended the message and immediately cringed. "That was embarrassing. I've got to stop rambling when I leave messages," she said to herself. She slid off her jacket and boots, leaned over to turn off the light, and crawled up the bed to lay down. She stared at the ceiling through the dim light. _"If I'm still awake in fifteen minutes, I'll try to call again,"_ she decided.

She closed her eyes and tried to pretend it was a normal night.

* * *

_Heavy footsteps in wet dirt. A low groan while it trudged through the darkness. Then a figure appeared in its line of sight, lit up like it was glowing in infrared._

_A panicked woman was crawling out of the bushes and staggering to her feet. Leaves and sticks were stuck in her brunette hair, mud caked onto her knees and front from being dragged, and she was missing a shoe. She limped out before spotting the onlooker and screaming. She made a run from it towards a road in the distance. A low groan echoed through its hollow frame before it began to pursue._

_It towered over the woman and yet kept up well. As she was slowed by the bushes and tree roots, it broke straight through everything, tearing through them with swipes of its unseen limbs. She looked back with eyes filled with terror just as she broke the tree line, then turned ahead just in time to see a large hole in the ground._

_Something sharp and glistening circled the top of the hole. She didn't have enough time to dodge as she spotted it right before her leg fell in. There came a bloodcurdling shriek._

Sammy woke from the nightmare and found that it was he who was screaming. A metallic yell that only barely resembled a human's, one that he cut off as quickly as he could, but the fear didn't go with it. In his mind he could still see the images of that woman who had been running through the woods. It had felt so real; she had looked so much like Charlie.

It took a second for the Puppet to remember where he was, folded up on Mike's couch with the throw blanket that had been covering him half hanging off. Though getting his bearings didn't exactly make him feel any better. It wasn't like he could seek out Charlie and assure himself that the much too real dream was nothing more than a figment of his imagination. He should've known this would happen without her.

His pity party was cut off by the sound of rapid footsteps and he only had a moment to shield his face with his arms before Mike came running out of the bedroom.

"What was that?!" he exclaimed. Blue eyes wide, dark hair tussled, and looking like he was half-prepared to run for his life. Except then he saw the striped one pulled in on himself, still shaking and trying desperately to hide the state of his mask from the man. Mike had an idea of what was going on. It still didn't make much sense, but he figured it out. "What happened? Did you have a nightmare or something?"

Just in case, Mike checked the clock to make sure it wasn't any hour on the dot just in case he reached the Puppet's trigger time and was about to get chased around. This wasn't the case, and Sammy turned his head further away with a strange dialing noise that he couldn't make sense of. Now realizing that there was no threat, Mike stood there unsure of what to do.

Sammy felt more than a little irritated at Mike's prolonged waiting in the room, but any static rising in his chest was abruptly stifled when he asked, "Want me to stay up with you for a few minutes?" Sammy nodded against his better judgement, desperate to not be alone. Mike came over and sat on the other side of the couch. The room fell painfully quiet.

Mike was looking to break that silence. First by turning on the TV, until he realized that the remote was currently on the end table on the other side of the Puppet. After some consideration, he decided it wasn't worth getting as there would be nothing but infomercials on at this hour. He turned his focus back on the animatronic, now kneeling on the couch with his face still hidden behind his arms.

"Want to talk about it?" Mike asked. Only once asked did he remember that he _couldn't_ talk about it. "Wait… Forget that. I'm still half asleep."

After that, the man was quite fine with returning to the silence, but then the animatronic shifted. It lowered its striped arms down and sat there hunched over for a long moment thinking, then reached for the drawing pad that had been brought with it. It opened it to a back page and pulled out its pencil to begin.

Mike's curiosity was piqued at the idea of it drawing its dream- though also a little uneasy. He could see himself walking into a situation where he saw a sketch of himself being brutally murdered. He didn't even know how he would handle seeing a picture of himself sleeping, other than not sleep ever again. He was brought out of these thoughts by Sammy stretching out his arm and nudging him with the book. It was too quick for it to have sketched anything and Mike looked at it intrigued.

Instead of a picture, there was a single line. _"It was about Charlie. She was attacked."_

The last thing he expected was an actual dialogue. "By what?" he asked. He noticed Sammy make a shrugging motion out of the corner of his eye. He guessed it wasn't important. "You're just worried about her. Not surprising, you two seem close," Mike said. He handed back the book. "Which of you is older?"

Sammy took the book, scribbled down, and handed it back. _"We're twins."_

"Right. She might've said that." He handed the book back again and settled back into the couch a little more. He stared at the blackened TV like there was going to be something on there and tried to ignore how tired he felt now that his adrenaline wore off. A quick glance over showed that the Puppet was now staring down at the book, not writing anything, hunched like it too was tired. A sharp contrast to earlier.

Earlier it had seemed so full of life- in an undead, inhuman way- but now was just a wind-up doll that was slowly running down. Or something like that, Mike wasn't too focused this late at night. Sammy felt the same way, but that's how it always was after midnight. These late hours made him feel unsafe. Something about that nightmare had seemed wrong somehow.

Unable to keep watching this, Mike sighed and leaned forwards to grab the blanket off the floor. "She's going to be fine. You're just a little homesick, that's all," he said. He draped the throw blanket over the animatronic's shoulders and tucked it around. "There you go. Just cocoon yourself in there in case you fall off the couch next time."

As he started to move back, Sammy's arm suddenly shot out and grabbed his wrist. The adrenaline began to flow immediately as Mike's heartrate could feel his pulse through his arm and tried to assure him by chiming quietly. He gently slid his hand up to wrap his arm around Mike's and used his other hand to write to write down another message, all while looking directly at Mike.

" _He's either going to kill me now or he's getting way too friendly,"_ Mike decided. The book was pushed to him and he looked down to read what was written.

" _Please stay with me?"_

That answered that as unsettled as he felt by this whole situation, there was something strangely sad about it. It just seemed pitiful how it asked him to stay even though he wasn't anything to it. He wanted to blame Charlie for filling his head with all those assurances about Sammy, because all they made Mike feel guilty. He caved and sat down alongside him.

"Yeah, sure, I will. Just don't expect me to pull an all-nighter," he said. Sammy perked a little and loosened his grip enough that Mike could grab the remote. "But if I'm going to be out here, I'm putting the TV on."

It was like a weight was lifted just to not be alone. Mike might've not been Charlie- Sammy knew any chance of physical affection was limited and released his arm quickly- but he was an assuring presence. A familiar face to remind him that Freddy's was over, everything was okay, and that it was just a normal night. Sammy could live with this.

But in the back of his mind, something still felt wrong. He couldn't explain it; the closest thing would be the feeling of being watched. It hadn't gone away even as the dream faded further from his mind.

He hoped it was gone by tomorrow.


	4. Scratches

It had been a long night without much sleep. Charlie spent most of it readjusting in bed and trying to get comfortable without much success. This didn't change her plans and as soon as morning came, she got up and slipped out the front door before her aunt could awaken. She drove away under a sun that hadn't even finished rising.

There was enough time before any of her classes to slip into the restroom, change her clothes, and brush her teeth. She had gotten herself somewhat presentable but looking in the mirror she still thought she looked more like a zombie than a person. She was already starting to get dark rings from only two nights of disrupted sleep. There wasn't much she could do to hide it and splashed some water on her face to rouse herself.

Then she went to class like usual. At first it seemed to go alright. She was groggy, but she was able to focus enough to get through. She talked to her professor afterwards to explain the situation- the short version where she was relocated out of a damaged house- and was relieved to find that she hadn't missed much. Apparently very few students came in the day before, so she had gotten lucky on that account.

By the second class however, Charlie's mind was starting to wander. It wasn't just because she was tired either. The many events of the day before were starting to pile on and distract her. She kept worrying about the house and playing out scenarios of what was going to happen next or how she could continue to hide Sammy once they lost it. She didn't even know where she was going to go tonight, let alone from now on.

Her lack of interest in class must've been noticed- that, or she looked worse than she thought- because after her second class Arty caught up to her.

"Hey, how's it going?" he asked kindly. She recognized the worry in his tone and wondered how obvious it was that she was distracted. "Everything good?"

"Yeah, I'm fine. Just a little tired. Long night," Charlie excused. "…Why?"

"You just looked a little out of it in class. Makes sense though," he said. He walked alongside her as she shuffled down the hall. "I uh, I wasn't trying to eavesdrop, but I heard you telling Dickerson about your house earlier. Sorry to hear that. How bad is it?"

"Not… Too bad. Nothing that can't be fixed. It's more the structure around it that's crumbling," she said. She hoped it was vague enough to not pick up the double meaning. "I'm more worried about how my brother's going to take it if we have to move."

"I didn't know you had a brother." Only then did Charlie notice her mistake. She became nervous quickly, wondering if Arty knew about her history. All he would have to do was a little research and he would know that she wasn't supposed to have a brother, and then he would ask questions. Before she could spiral further, Arty continued, "I'm sure you can get it fixed. Foundation repair's a thing for a reason."

Charlie instantly relaxed as she realized he knew nothing about Sammy. She was just being paranoid, which would probably only grow worse if she continued to fumble her words. She decided to slip out of the conversation as easily as she could.

"That's the plan. Sorry to cut this short but I've got to get going. I have to get some work done before lunch," Charlie said. Arty seemed a little disappointed for a second, but then he almost got a look of realization.

"Oh… Right, yeah. Lunch. Maybe we'll catch up later?" Arty asked. Charlie agreed, but then he seemed to get a strange smile. A little goofier, almost like that look he used to get when she would agree to help him with a project except this time she didn't know where it came from. "Tell Jessie I said hi?"

"Sure thing." They then split up from each other and she continued down the hall. _"'Jessie'? Huh..."_ She hadn't talked to her at all yesterday and with all this piling on, she wasn't sure if she was going to be able to stand going to lunch. She really didn't want to have to talk about what happened yet. " _I should call Jess. I'll just tell her I can't make it. She'll understand."_

Deciding to forgo the rest of the day, Charlie headed outside and called Jessica. Her friend answered rather quickly, luckily still being in between classes of her own.

"Hey, Charlie!" she greeted chirpily. "How are things going?"

"They're going," Charlie lightly joked. She tried to cover up how tired she sounded because she knew the blond would notice. "Actually, I was calling to say that I think I'm going to have to skip lunch today. I had a rough night's sleep and I'm just going to drive by and see Sammy, see how things are with him. Sorry about this."

"Wait, you're here at the university? I thought you were going to at least take a few days off while this whole… Thing sorted out," Jessica said in surprise. The worry was just itching to come out. "Is everything okay?"

"Yeah, just me pushing my luck again. Nothing new. I'll talk to you later?"

"Uh… Sure! Call me back!" Jessica said uncertainly. Almost like she knew Charlie had been promising everyone she would call them back or see them later. Or maybe she just noticed how quickly she tried to get off the phone. Either way, she let the call end and with everything there finished, Charlie got in her car and drove to Mike's apartment.

Mike looked even more sleep deprived than usual when he answered the door, but he was dressed in a security guard uniform like he was preparing to go to work. "Hey there, Charlie. Come on in," Mike greeted as he let her in and shut the door behind her. "How's it going?"

The same question that Jessica asked her, but this time she gave a better answer. "Alright. Had a rough night's sleep."

"I can relate. I woke up at six with a crick in my neck and mime on my chest. Just barely skirted suffocation," Mike said matter-of-factly. She only had a second to process what that meant before Sammy came out of hiding and rushed to greet her with an excited trill. They exchanged a tight hug.

"I missed you last night, Sammy. It felt weird not having you nearby," Charlie said. Sammy squeezed her a little tighter than usual. Almost like he was bothered by something but considering that there seemed to be no hesitation around Mike she didn't think it had anything to do with him. Maybe he was just homesick too.

It was Mike who broke the moment with an unfortunately timed, "How'd things go with your aunt?"

"…Actually, that's kind of what I need to talk about…" Charlie revealed as she slowly drew back from the embrace. "I didn't talk with Aunt Jen before I left, but last night we got in a huge fight. I don't know what happened. One minute I'm trying to convince her to let me help pay for the house, the next I'm threatening to leave town and… It just all fell apart. The whole thing."

While Sammy was disappointed to hear it, it was Charlie who was clearly the more devastated of the two. Especially when she admitted, "I think we're going to lose the house. I don't know what to do…"

Taking his sister by the wrist, Sammy coaxed her to the couch and she sat down, head in hands, as he snatched up his drawing pad and began to write a message. In the middle of it he stopped, erased it, and began again. Then he did it again, obviously struggling with the words. He looked down at his distressed sibling sympathetically and finally found what he wanted to say.

He tapped her shoulder and handed her the pad. Charlie took it and read what it said: _"We will still have each other even if we lose the house. I love you, Charlie."_

"I love you too, Sammy. You're right, we'll figure something out," she agreed with an honest but somewhat sad smile. "I just wish there was more I could do."

"Quit blaming yourself. You literally fought for that house, there's just some people you can't convince," Mike said as he headed into the kitchen. "You want something to drink? I've got soda, Snapple, and coffee."

"No thank you. I'm not going to be here long," Charlie assured.

"You can stick around if you want. My shift starts in three quarters of an hour, so I'll be out of here," he offered. He came back with a can of soda and cracked it open. "I won't be back until after dark. Might save him the panic of being here alone," he said, gesturing to Sammy before taking a drink.

It was a tempting offer to hide away from her problems here, but Charlie wasn't sure how comfortable she was about effectively bumming at his house. It was weird enough asking him to watch her animatronic brother. Said brother, however, immediately jumped at the idea and smiled eagerly at her. He chimed happily, patted her on the back, and said without words, _"That's a great idea! Stay with me!"_

"Well… Alright, but just until you get home. Maybe in the meantime I'll go back to the house and get Ella so I can work on her. I could use a distraction," Charlie said. Sammy gave an eager chime and Mike raised his brows with concern. She got a slight tinge of an amused smile. "Don't worry, she's just a toy. A project I'm working on for school."

"That's a shame. I could've used an extra fifty bucks," Mike said.

"You can still cuddle her if you want."

Mike stopped mid-drink and slowly lowered his can with an unenthused look. "I don't know what you're getting at, but it was his arm wrapped around my neck last night. As far as I know, he had me in a choke hold," he clarified. Charlie didn't seem to mean anything by it beyond teasing, but Sammy's smile- which somehow looked wider than before- was enough to drive Mike back into the kitchen.

Charlie gave a weary exhale and continued, "I guess I'll go check on the house and get Ella. Is there anything else I should grab while I'm there?" Sammy raised his hands, each raising a finger up like bunny ears. "Theodore?" He nodded, she smiled. "Can do. I'll be back before Mike leaves."

A little later, Charlie left the apartment and drove back to the house. She wasn't sure what she was expecting to find, but she unlocked the door, let herself in, and found that it was in virtually the same condition now as it was the day before. It was unsurprising, but also a relief, half-expecting someone to loot it since most of the windows were open. That was probably why the house felt so cold.

She got a quick look around the house and found everything where she left it, even down to the askew couch cushions and dust bin full of swept glass that had yet to be thrown out. It was all very depressing and Charlie found herself returning to the basement and looking at the damage again. It looked the same as the day before, no change.

Except for one very subtle thing. There was a weird smell coming from the basement. It smelled earthen, like a clump of dirt scooped straight out of the earth, except with a foul tinge on it. She got out her flashlight and shined it down into the basement but saw nothing down there. She remembered there was a ladder behind the house but wasn't interested in the smell enough to go get it.

If anything, the smell could've been coming from outside, or there was an open hole in the basement where mud had slid in. It didn't smell strong enough to be worrying and thus she continued to the stairs.

It was only once she was halfway up the creaking stairs that she heard a familiar noise. That scratching sound from before had returned, the one that was clearly something scraping on wood. Except that this time it almost sounded like it was coming from underneath her. There was no access under the stairs though and the basement wouldn't have reached this far. She continued upstairs and continued to hear the noise.

" _That has to be the tree scratching on a wall or the roof. That's what it sounds like… But why is it coming from so low? Is the noise just echoing into the basement and giving the illusion that it's down there? That has to be it."_ Even the most rational explanation sounded like a stretch. _"I'm going to creep myself out. It's been days, if there was anything that got in during the storm it would be gone by now."_

With that in mind, she went into her bedroom and began to collect things. She had emptied her bag out in the car so she had more than enough room to fit Theodore, a few more changes of clothes, and her smaller tool kit- if she was able to get it out of the garage, she realized with dismay. Ella was too big to fit in the bag so she planned on carrying her down to the car.

She had just hoisted the doll into her arms, its cold head pressed against her shoulder, when she heard a loud noise that sounded like it came from directly beneath her. One she hadn't expected.

* * *

Jessica was more than a little concerned about Charlie's brief phone call. She knew about the damage done to the house as they had talked the morning after it occurred. She assumed the silence afterwards was just because Charlie had her hands full and gave her space, but that call had given Jessica cause for concern. It was just the way Charlie said nothing about what was going on, like she was trying to hide it.

Deciding to take matters into her own hands, Jessica left school early too. Instead of going to Charlie's house right away she went to see if she could get some answers from a familiar source.

"Hey Jess! I didn't expect to see you here so early. Come on in!" Marla chirped as she let her friend inside.

It was a typical afternoon at her house. Her parents weren't home yet but the sound of the television signaled that she wasn't alone. Stepping into the living room, Jessica found Lamar and Jason sitting on the floor in front of the television playing a video game together. Jessica wasn't surprised to see Jason at home, guessing that his school was still closed due to tornado damage. She could only assume Lamar was hiding out here.

"Hey guys," Jessica greeted with a wave. Lamar waved back while Jason's eyes stayed glued to the screen. Marla noticed this and pursed her lips.

"Lamar's helping Jason with his _homework_ ," she told Jessica. Or that was Lamar's cover story to explain him being here. Jessica wouldn't fault him for that, he deserved a break now and then. "So, what's up? I thought your classes ran later than this."

"They do, I just left early… Have you heard from Charlie recently?" Jessica asked with concern.

"Not today, but Carlton and I swung by her house yesterday to see what's left of it. Have you seen it?" The grimace Jessica got at 'what's left of it' gave her 'no' away before she said it.

"Not yet, I got caught up. How bad is it?"

"Not super bad. Like, bad, but not devastatingly bad," Marla tried to explain. She fumbled around with words to explain it before clarifying, "The garage is pretty much destroyed but that's pretty much it."

"And right after she gets everything settled," Jessica said sympathetically, brows furrowed with guilt at not being there. "I got a call from her earlier but something seemed off. I didn't get a chance to ask her what's wrong, but I'm sure it's probably that."

"She was supposed to talk to her aunt about the house, so that could be it too," Marla said. The other nodded in agreement and she turned towards the two at the television. "Hey Lamar, have you talked with Charlie or John since yesterday?"

"Nope. I spent all yesterday with no phone, wrist deep in community service to help the rebuilding efforts," he said. He turned to the two to clarify, "My parents think it'll look great on my transcripts."

"Always the good Samaritans! My parents are the same way," Marla joked lightly. She looked back to see that the blond beside her was lost in thought and looking concerned. "Well, if you're that worried then why don't you go see her and see how she's doing?

"I might. She said she was going to go check on Sammy… But I don't want to drop in on her without calling."

"I don't know about that. Normally I wouldn't either, but you know how dodgy Charlie gets when something's bothering her. This might be the only way to catch her and see what's up." Marla had a point, and she supposed it wouldn't be as bad if she didn't let herself in. "Might be for the best with whatever's going on with the animals in town."

"You heard about that? That was brutal," Lamar chimed up. "Carlton said they found a leg out in the park."

"Cool," Jason said.

"No, not cool! Lamar, don't say that around him!" Marla lightly scolded. She put her hands on her hips. "Besides, Carlton told me that too. I _think_ it was a joke. An animal would've eaten a leg."

Feeling a lot more uncomfortable, Jessica started heading back for the door. "I'm going to Charlie's!" she called as she headed out. A chorus of voices called farewells after her and she shut the door and got in her car.

Jessica pulled up into the driveway of Charlie's house and found her car waiting parked outside. She glanced inside as she passed and hesitated, noticing some folded clothes and things in the back, almost like she had been packing. A little more concerned, she jogged up the steps to find the front door left open. She restrained herself from walking in and instead leaned in and looked around, then called out.

"Charlie?"

Charlie was so on edge that jumped at the voice calling from the beneath her and almost fumbled Ella. It was only Jessica; she was worked up over nothing.

"I'm here! Hold on and I'll come down," she called back. She carried the doll out of the room, down the stairs, and found Jessica still waiting at the front door. "Sorry, I was up in my room. What are you doing here?"

"Oh, you know. Just dropping in for a surprise visit," Jessica said with a smile. Charlie's quirked brow showed she didn't buy the excuse. "…Okay, so I wanted to come see what was up. You don't usually skip lunch unless you're busy with something." She left out the part about not calling and glanced at Ella. "Oh hey, your old doll! You're not getting rid of her, are you?"

"No, no. She's part of my project for school. I wanted to come get her so that I'd have something to work on," Charlie explained. "You're lucky you caught me before I left. I was just getting a few things."

"You're staying with Jen?" Charlie got a strained smile.

"No, we had a falling out. I'm not sure where I'm going to be staying yet… You can come in if you want, see the damage. I have to get some tools out of there anyway," Charlie said as she set Ella down beside the door. Jessica let herself in and pushed closed to a crack behind her. "Its been a long couple of days."

"I'd say. How's Sammy taking all of this?"

"Better than I expected. You remember Schmidt from the pizzeria? Schmidt's letting him stay at his apartment, which seems to be working out so far," Charlie said. She beckoned Jessica back to the garage. "I guess I could always spend the night here. I have a lock on my bedroom door but I doubt anyone would try to break in."

"I don't think you should risk it. You could always stay with me. Or maybe we could talk to someone at the university about temporary housing, I'm sure they must… Have it. Wow." The blond watched the door open and saw the amount of damage inside. She whistled at the sight. "So… Not pretty."

"If you think it looks bad now, wait until it rains again and knocks whatever's loose into the tree down into the house," Charlie partially joked and slightly lamented. Then she turned her gaze to the other side of the hole where the workbench and counters were, along with Charlie's preferred toolbox that was lying out on top of the latter.

She looked down towards the floor and sized up what she had to work with. The hole stretched to about two away from the wall, and only half of that seemed secure while the rest was caving downwards. Those few inches of floor that stood straight looked firmly in place. Holding onto the door, she reached out with her boot and pressed down on it. The front bowed in, the back did not.

She applied more pressure and didn't hear or feel anything shift. Charlie pressed her back to the wall and began to carefully inch out. It felt like it was going to hold her weight, the only issue would be that she didn't lose her balance and fall in, or that's what she hoped. Coincidentally, that was also when Jessica noticed her.

"What are you doing?!" she gasped.

"It's okay. It feels steady," Charlie assured calmly. She continued sidling across, keeping her boots as close to the wall as she could. "It looks a lot worse than it is."

"Is it? Because it looks like you're walking over a giant hole that leads into-!... Wait, is that a basement? You have a basement?"

"Yeah, it's news to me too." She focused on her steps as she inched further across the gap while her friend watched from the side with bated breath. As much as Charlie didn't want to look down, her eyes constantly darted down to check where she was walking and make sure she wasn't stepping too far out. Finally, she slid onto the section of secure flooring and Jessica breathed a sigh of relief.

Charlie went right to the counter and grabbed a few more tools to put into the toolbox, along with a spare battery pack which she fit into her jacket pocket. Once she thought she had enough- at least, what she could carry for now- she made her way back to the wall and began the process of inching back over. She went just as slow as the first time and handed the toolbox off to Jessica as soon as she could.

It was funny, she had heard all that scratching while upstairs, but now, inching over this open hole into the basement, it was completely silent. The smell didn't seem as noticeable either.

Charlie stepped off from the edge and back onto solid ground. She flashed Jessica a confident smile as she took her toolbox back. "See? You don't have to worry about me that much."

Jessica huffed a little. "Hey, I wouldn't be worrying so much if there wasn't a massive hole in your floor and rabid pack of bears eating people. Especially now that you've got an open skylight."

The comment was peculiar enough to stop Charlie in the hallway. She blinked for a moment before looking back at her friend with confusion. "…What are you talking about?" she asked. Jessica got an uneasy look.

"I guess you haven't heard. Two women got mauled by wild animals. I don't know if it was the storm that set them off or if they were starving, but they found one of the bodies over at the park and she was practically eviscerated! They thought it was some sort of bizarre ritual killing or serial killer before they noticed the bite marks," she explained. Just talking about it made her shiver. "I didn't even think there were many bears around here, but there's no way a pack of dogs could've done that."

"That's… Really disturbing… Now I'm starting to see why you might've gotten worried," Charlie admitted. She thought about the scratching noises again and even though she thought they were unrelated, she decided it was time to leave.

Charlie picked up Ella before shutting and locking the front door behind her. Jessica lugged the toolbox to the car while she sent one last longing look up at the house before following. She laid the doll in the backseat and double checked everything to make sure she had gotten what she needed.

"Where are you heading now?" Jessica asked, leaning against the car. "I'm guessing not back to school."

"Back to Mike's. I told Sammy I was going to come back and spend some time with him after I got Ella."

"How about I come with you? I can help you carry your stuff in, and it'll give us some time to hang out," Jessica offered. Charlie considered it and decided that it was the least they could do to make up for her cancelling on her so abruptly. Besides, Jessica always did have a way to ease the mood, so she agreed.

They drove to Mike's apartment where she found his car missing. He must've already left for work, which made her feel a little awkward about bringing Jessica over without him being here, but she wouldn't be there long. Jessica carried the toolbox again; Charlie offered to switch it for Ella but she didn't want to risk dropping and breaking the doll.

At least if the heavy box fell, the only thing she would risk breaking would be her toes. Jessica's words, not Charlie's.

Charlie knocked on the front door and called through, "Sammy, I'm here!" Almost instantly she heard the click of the lock and the door started to swing open. "Jessica's out here," she quickly added. The door stopped abruptly where it was, open enough to let Charlie in. "I'll be right back," she said before stepping inside. She handed the doll off to the Puppet with a simple, "Well, here she is."

Sammy took Ella with a delighted chime and Jessica heard it through the open door. It was the first time she had ever heard his ringing, recognizing it from Charlie's recounting.

"The house is about the same as when we left. Nothing new to report. How long ago did Mike leave?" Charlie asked. Sammy raised his hand and pointed up with a finger, then moved it in ticking motions, counterclockwise, twice; ten minutes ago. "So much for getting back before he left."

The toolbox was starting to get heavy. "Here," Jessica said as she handed it into the doorway.

"Sorry. Thanks." Charlie turned and took it from her.

It was unclear which of them bumped the door. It could've been Jessica's elbow as she passed the toolbox off or it could've been the box itself as Charlie brought it inside. Something bumped the door enough to push it open further and before Sammy could move back Jessica raised her eyes and saw him. Both were equally startled to see one another.

"Oh!" Jessica cried. Sammy made a sharp noise and vanished a second afterwards, disappearing right before her eyes. Charlie looked back a second too late with clenched teeth as she realized what happened. The only hint that he was somewhere nearby was the dull static she could still hear.

"…So, uh… That was Sammy," Charlie said awkwardly. _"Well, that was bound to happen eventually."_

"I'm so sorry, Sammy!" Jessica called after him regretfully. She was more mortified by what she had done than seeing the animatronic. "I didn't see much of anything really!" She could hear the static but only Charlie could recognize the more annoyed tinge it took. The blond looked to her friend with remorse, "I really didn't mean for that to happen."

"He'll be fine, Jess. Don't stress yourself out," Charlie assured her. He sounded frustrated, but he would be fine in the long run. "It was my fault anyway. I'm the one who swung the door open."

"No, I think I hit it. There goes my chance of ever getting to see your brother," Jessica sighed. She waited a moment before turning back and quietly adding, "He's not as scary as I was imagining. I should've known Carlton would over-exaggerate." Charlie gave a half-laugh and Jessica smiled a little. Somewhere in the apartment, the static almost reluctantly faded away.

* * *

Sammy knew that Charlie must've been exhausted. She had looked tired that entire afternoon but to fall asleep on the couch was out of character for her. He covered her with the throw blanket, taking care not to wake her, and shut off all the lights. The only thing left on being the muted television that cast little more than a dull glow over the room once the sun went down.

To say he was worried about her was an understatement. He could tell beyond her assurances that this whole ordeal was taking a toll on her, and he hated that there wasn't anything he could do to alleviate her burden. All he could do was let her sleep and make sure she got rest. It was a hard pill to swallow that he was virtually useless in this situation.

This wasn't an entirely foreign feeling to Sammy. Throughout his life he danced in between being helpless, being powerful, or being outright restrained into submission. He had long gotten over the fact that he could never be a human again, but in moments like this, where he knew Charlie needed help that he couldn't give, it bothered him. He wanted to be able to do more than this.

Sammy was pulled from his thoughts by the sound of a car pulling up outside. He knew it had to be Mike with how late it was and wondered how he would react to Charlie still being there. Or if he would come in loud and woke her up in the process. If she woke now, she would probably return to the house alone and Sammy didn't want that. If he had a breath, he would be holding it.

Thankfully, Mike let himself in without making much noise and noticed Charlie before he could say anything. He seemed a little surprised to see her there and looked to Sammy. The Puppet flashed his constant smile and shrugged, and that seemed to be enough for the man who just headed into the kitchen. He was carrying a brown paper bag that piqued Sammy's curiosity enough to follow him.

Mike pulled a few boxes of takeout out of the paper bag and lined them up on the counter before throwing the bag under the sink. Sammy came up beside him and watched him open and check inside of each box, then setting the one aside that he was preparing to eat. The man tapped on the remaining boxes.

"Kung Pao, Lo Mein. When Charlie wakes up, tell her she's welcome to whichever," Mike said quietly. He put them in the fridge the same way they had been on the counter. He grabbed the remaining carton and a packet of chopstick before heading to the small dining room table. "And make sure she doesn't take off before morning. I don't want her running around in the dark."

Mike sat down at the dining room table. Normally he would've eaten in front of the television, but he didn't want to risk sneaking around in the dark. He had only taken a bite of the spicy chicken when he noticed Sammy circle the table and slowly pull the chair out. He then spun into it, landing in the chair and propped his head up with one arm, grinning across the table and looking for a reaction.

All Mike gave him was a raised brow before continuing to chew through a rubbery but flavorful piece of chicken. Sammy continued to watch him, as he usually did, but he wasn't afraid of the puppet's behavior anymore. Or he wasn't until he briefly looked down, looked back up, and noticed that something had changed in the process, his mask.

Sammy's eyes were narrowed more than usual and his smiled seemed to be a little thinner, with one side raised a little higher. The look didn't resemble anger, more so something like amusement, like a smirk.

The fact that what was clearly porcelain had moved on its own to form a different expression was just uncanny enough to remind Mike why he was originally unsettled by him. He swallowed his mouthful and said relatively coolly, "It's not easy to eat with you giving me that look."

Then something peculiar happened. The eyes widened- as Mike was watching- and the smile slipped a bit. It almost looked like surprise. It was then that Mike realized that Sammy didn't know he was doing it. He shot him a smirk of his own.

"Real cute, Stripes," he said patronizingly. Almost instantly, Sammy's mask reset to that empty smile that he usually had and the fun was over. Mike decided not to lapse back into silence. Feeling a little more confident, he changed the direction of the one-sided conversation. "Charlie doesn't strike me as the type to sleep on someone else's couch. How long's she been out?"

The Puppet raised his propping hand, pointed a finger up, and then made a couple of clockwise circles. Trying to do the same signaling to him that he did with Charlie. Mike, of course, had no context to this and watched as Sammy made circles in front of him.

"…No clue. Got it," Mike said. Sammy wished he could show him his lack of amusement, but he wouldn't lose control of his mask twice. "I know what it's like to get stuck sleeping on someone else's couch. Doesn't matter who they are or how nice they are about it, there's always this feeling like you're not supposed to be there."

Sammy tilted his head questioningly and Mike's gaze dropped to his food as he stirred it absentmindedly.

"Let's just say that I was barely scraping by even before I worked at Freddy's. During too, but at least then I had a steady job. When I first moved here, I was living out of my car- you get the picture." He was almost embarrassed spilling his troubles to an animatronic, but least this one wasn't trying to put a hook through his throat. "The point being, she's in a tough spot. So, let her know she can stay as long as she needs. Okay?"

Sammy was relieved to hear it and nodded with a chime. That would certainly make things easier. The only challenge now would be to convince her to stay, but he was sure he could convince her.

"…But if that baby doll out there starts moving on its own, I am going to need another fifty bucks."

Things after that were quiet. Mike finished eating and went back out into the living room for a few minutes to sit in the armchair and watch the muted TV. The fact that the volume was off wasn't even what eventually drove him to bed, but the fact that there was nothing on. Once he headed to his room, Sammy took his spot, curled up tightly in the chair and using his jacket as a blanket- it wasn't like he would notice.

Sammy expected to wake up when Charlie did, so he was confused when he roused around five in the morning for no apparent reason. All at once he was hit by an invasive sensation so obvious that he instantly went on guard. He recognized this feeling; it was almost the exact same thing he felt before the first time he encountered L.E.F.T.E.

The Puppet climbed to the floor and looked around in a blind panic trying to identify the source of that pulsing agitation. He fought to keep himself quiet as he listened in carefully. It had to be nearby.

Then he heard a dull thump.

He suddenly affixed his focus through the kitchen and towards the back door. There was something out in the backyard. The Puppet rose from the floor and floated to the kitchen doorway, then climbed up it and crawled onto the ceiling upside down. He was already bracing himself to attack with his limbs bent and his eyes alight, but he stayed completely silent as he listened and observed.

The thing was so close to the back door that he could hear it brushing against it. It sounded massive from how much of it slid across the wood. Then there was a scraping noise on the window beside the door as numerous, sharp points dragged upwards along it. The blinds blocked even a glimpse of whatever was feeling over the window and testing the glass. Sammy started to climb around the light fixture to get closer, trying to get an angle that would allow him to see through.

A loud clatter stopped him in his tracks and his head snapped to the left and the far wall. He recognized the noise as a garbage can being knocked over. What followed was loud crunching as garbage was flattened under the heavy weight of a second creature. The first could still be heard scraping and tapping at the window. _There was more than one of them._

And one of them was walking along the side of the apartment towards the living room wall. Sammy crawled back out and perched himself in the near center of the living room ceiling. Like a large, dark spider waiting on its web, even if that probing feeling inside his head made him feel more like a trapped fly. As he waited there, the same distance from the covered window as Charlie and the couch, he heard more just outside.

There were heavy footsteps out in the dirt that signaled a third of these creatures waiting outside the walls. A large shadow was cast over the window from something standing in between it and the streetlight. It was so close and yet just like before he couldn't see it, just feel it, hear it, and know it was there.

The curtains that had kept him safe now blinded him to the danger. He couldn't will himself to open them; he just knew that he couldn't let them see him.

Sammy couldn't move to wake up Charlie either. He couldn't let his guard down for even a moment; he could only stay there and wait for whatever was going to come, prepared to fight with everything he had. He listened to the footsteps and scratches against the walls, and then unidentifiable noises that sounded like shuffling or rustling.

It went on for twenty long minutes before the noises abruptly died down. The shadows disappeared from the window, the footsteps died into rustling and then silence, and that feeling he woke with too grew fainter before suddenly disappearing entirely. By five-thirty, the house had gone silent and neither Charlie nor Mike had awoken from it.

Sammy went through every room in the house to listen for any sign of the creatures and found nothing. Whatever they were, they were gone, but he felt no safer. He barely managed to calm down enough to shift out of his defensive mode and climb down from the roof. Eventually he sat down on the armchair again, but this time he stayed wide awake and upright, continuing to stay on guard in case they returned.

He felt a kid again. A kid hiding in their room and waiting desperately for morning to come scare away the monsters right outside the door.


	5. Investigation

Charlie woke slowly with a languid stretch before rolling over and catching sight of Mike's living room. The first thing that came to mind being, _"Uh oh_." Falling asleep had been unintentional but staying the entire night without asking if it was alright was totally out of the question. She sat up on the couch.

Sammy was awake and unfurled himself from the armchair once he heard her moving around. He greeted her with a relieved smile hiding a very anxious look. Charlie gave him an embarrassed smile.

"So much for worrying about where I was going to sleep," she lightly joked. She glanced to the clock on the wall and that amusement quickly dropped to surprise. She expected it to be six or seven at latest, but there it was pushing nine o'clock. Meaning she hadn't just slept on Mike's couch, she overslept on it. "Wait, I slept all night? Why didn't you wake me up?"

Her brother gave a dismissive wave and floated over to grab his drawing pad and pen. Charlie sat up in a scramble and shoved the blanket off, tussling her hair quickly before sliding her boots back on, trying to make herself look somewhat presentable. Especially since he could see the bathroom door was shut and knew that probably meant Mike was awake.

"I hope he doesn't think I did this on purpose," she muttered under her breath. Before she could continue, the drawing pad was laid in her lap. There was a rather long message written on it.

" _Charlie, something happened last night. Three large creatures were walking around the apartment. It sounded like they were looking for a way inside. One was at the back door rubbing on it and scratching on the glass. I couldn't see what they were because of the curtains and they left before six. I'm very concerned."_

Something about the word "scratches" deeply disturbed Charlie. Her mind immediately went to the scratching she had heard in the house even though she knew it had to be unrelated.

"You said creatures. You're sure it wasn't someone trying to break in?" she asked. He nodded with certainty and she was more unsettled. "You know yesterday Jessica told me that there's been animal attacks since the storm. Not minor attacks either, a couple of women were completely mauled. I don't want to jump to conclusions..." She started to trail off, but he got the point. "…Did you tell Mike yet?" He shook his head.

Taking the pad back, Sammy began to write something more down when the bathroom door opened and Mike came out. His hair was damp and upon seeing Charlie awake he shot her a smile.

"Look who's finally decided to join us. Any longer and I might've had to start checking for a pulse," he joked. "Morning, Charlie." She gave him an apologetic smile.

"Morning, but for the record I didn't plan on passing out like that… And apparently my alarm clock wasn't working," she said, shooting a glance over as Sammy. He was still writing down in his book and she looked back to Mike. "Did you hear anything weird last night? Like someone walking around outside?"

"…Now that you mention it, yeah, I heard some sort of banging last night. Didn't stop me from going right back to sleep. Why? What happened?" To answer him, Sammy simply held out his book to him. What he had Charlie read was at the top and Mike easily scanned over it. He went from confused to a firm faced and slightly disturbed.

"I don't know if you've heard about the recent animal attacks in town," Charlie started.

"Yeah, they're all over the news. Two women were killed and strewn halfway across Hurricane," Mike recited. "I think they said they think it's a pack of mountain lions. If mountain lions even form a pack."

"I'm under the impression that they don't know what it was. Yesterday it was bears," Charlie said. Now she was beginning to piece the two events together. Focusing on what Mike said, she picked up the remote and turned on the TV, changing it to the local news. It was currently broadcasting the weather but she left it on with the hope that eventually it would switch to news about the attacks.

Meanwhile, Mike continued to read into what Sammy had written more recently and recited it aloud.

"Because the noises wound down and stopped at five-thirty, plenty of time before sunrise and the six AM cut off, I'm more than certain it was animatronic in nature…" Mike said. Then his eyes widened at the next part, "Even though Circus Baby is still wandering the streets- What does he mean here? Isn't Circus Baby that mascot from the knockoff Freddy's? It's wandering _the streets?_ " he asked in alarm.

"Not exactly. We don't actually know where Baby is, but I'd put my money on her being in that abandoned animatronics facility on the edge of town, Afton Robotics," Charlie explained. Though in hindsight, Baby did have sharp fingers that looked like claws and her actual claw could've done serious damage if fully utilized. "You think it's Baby?" she asked Sammy. He shook his head.

But he did have a point about its timing and she had no doubt he knew exactly when they came and left due to his internal clock. Baby might've been the only animatronic that they knew was on the loose, but she knew that there was more animatronics in the fire from the pictures Sammy had shown her. One especially beasty one being a mess of wires with a Freddy face, not to mention Afton himself.

This was something that deserved thinking about, and Charlie found that sometimes six heads did better than one- or three in this case. "I think I might call the guys and see if we can meet up," she said. Sammy was a little less than thrilled about her going outside but knew that it was probably safe during the day, and so nodded and didn't put up a fight.

"Are we not going to address that there's a clown running loose in the city?" Mike asked incredulously. "Maybe someone should know about that."

"They do. My friend's dad is the police chief. He's been on a manhunt for her since she got out. I guess it's not something you can tell the public without eliciting panic," Charlie said. Mike, who looked only more unsettled now, watched blankly as she grabbed her jacket off the couch and went fishing for her cellphone.

Just to put the cherry on top, Sammy came up to him and pushed the drawing pad down in Mike's hands so he could write on it upside down. Bluntly writing out: _"You should check your garbage cans."_

"Thanks for the tip," Mike said flatly.

Charlie started to dial Jessica's number as she unlocked and stepped out the front door. Since Mike didn't seem to mind her staying over, he probably wouldn't mind letting her get changed in his bathroom. Then she could meet her friends somewhere and figure out where to go from there. Or that was the plan until she stepped out the front door and saw something out of place waiting right outside.

There, in the small patch of grass that was the front yard, was a large spot of disturbed earth. It looked like someone had dug up an uneven hole in the yard and then filled it right back in overnight.

Charlie didn't know what to make of it. It just seemed so random; it didn't even fit in with Sammy's retelling of the night. She leaned back in the door and called in, "Mike, you might want to see this."

Mike quirked a brow and came over to the door, stepped outside, and his eyes landed right on the big dark spot in the grass. Upon first look he didn't realize it was a digging spot because of how dark the soil was.

"Did someone set my lawn on fire?! What in the actual-… Wait, no. That's just dirt." Mike squinted at the upturned spot. "Hey, Stripes, did you hear anyone digging out here or anything like that?" He looked back to Sammy who seemed unsure before remembering the rustling at the end. That could've been digging, he decided, and he nodded. Mike tossed his hands in the air. "I don't even know what to make of that."

"This is weird. I can't think of any wild animal that would dig into the ground like that," Charlie said. "At least, not out of the ones we're thinking of. Could it be anything else?" The man shrugged.

"Maybe the landlord sent someone down here to look at the septic tank? Would've probably been around seven, so it would've been before I got up and after he said those things split," Mike said, grasping at straws. It seemed awfully ironic that these two events would like up, but they couldn't think of a way they would be linked. "It had to be something like that. I'll ask him later."

This seemed to be a good enough explanation. With Mike still outside, Charlie headed to her car to get the things she needed. She felt uncomfortable walking by the patch of dirt. There was nothing about it to hint that something was amiss, but the way it sat there like an unmarked grave seemed foreboding. She was much more comfortable once she got back inside.

She headed into the bathroom and called Jessica while getting undressed for a shower. Even though it was the weekend, she was already awake.

"Morning, Jess. What do you think about meeting up with the guys for a late breakfast or early lunch?" Charlie asked. Just the thought of a real meal after a day of little more than granola bars and trail mix were enough to make her stomach pang in hunger. Thankfully, Jessica was all for the idea.

"Sounds great! It has been forever since we've all been in one place. How about the Waffle Wagon?" Jessica asked. Charlie agreed. "Great! I'll call Marla and she can call everyone else. You _could_ call John."

"That I could, and I will after my shower. See you in about… Thirty minutes?" The deal was struck and the call was ended.

After a quick shower, an equally quick change, and a glance in the mirror Charlie was ready to go. She was relieved to see that some of the telltales of exhaustion were gone from her face. He hair was still slightly damp but would dry quickly out under the sun. She finally felt a little better- though that could've been because she had enough distractions to keep her from thinking of the house, and the moment she did she made her call to John.

"Hello?"

"Morning. It's me," she greeted almost shyly. Only now realizing that she hadn't called or talked to him since she had left that voice mail.

"Hey, there you are! How's it going?" John greeted enthusiastically. He didn't even ask her why she hadn't called the day before, he just sounded so thrilled to hear from her. That alone felt so soothing.

"Pretty good all things considered. I was wondering if you would like to meet me, Jess, and the others over at the Waffle Wagon? I'm not sure who all's coming, but there's at least two of us."

"I wouldn't miss it. Do you need a ride?"

"No, I'm good. I'm heading out right now, so I'll see you there," Charlie said. They exchanged goodbyes and the call was ended. Now she was starting to feel a little sorry that the main topic over breakfast was going to be the weird goings-on in town, but she would find a way to time it right. It wasn't a dire enough situation to go in stumbling over her words and frantically rousing them to action.

She came out to find Sammy in the armchair, watching the news intensely, and Mike talking to someone on the phone in the kitchen. She heard him say something about the dirt outside so she guessed it was the landlord. A quick glance towards the TV showed that the news was talking about an event in Cedar City, so still nothing about the animal attacks. She turned back to her brother.

"I'm going to go meet up with the guys. You'll be okay while I'm gone?" she asked.

Sammy gave her a perplexed look, as though questioning it. Something along the lines of, _"Of course I will. When am I not?"_

"Just double checking. I won't be gone too long, but don't be surprised if I end up staying the night somewhere else tonight. Even if that means staying in Jess' dorm." Sammy seemed much less enthused by this suggestion and Charlie gave him an assuring smile and a quick hug. "But I'll be back before I make any decisions, and I'll be careful while I'm out."

This pacified him enough that he didn't put up a fight. Instead, he nodded and hugged her back, then let her walk out the front door. His gaze returned to the TV to wait for some form of an answer.

The Waffle Wagon was about what Charlie had expected, an unassuming breakfast themed restaurant stuck beside a deli. From the construction site across the street, it looked like they would soon be getting more competition too. She had driven past this place a few times since she moved back to Hurricane but never felt much of a draw to stop by.

Upon stepping inside, she was hit by the smell of grilled meat and vanilla and was reminded again of how hungry she was. She got a corner booth large enough to fit everyone and ordered straight away, expecting to have a few minutes to herself. So, she was pleasantly surprised when Jessica appeared almost immediately afterwards. She was bright eyed and bushy tailed and dressed in something more fitting for a classy dinner than breakfast at a pancake house, typical Jessica.

Which only punctuated how strange Carltonwas acting when he arrived. He looked all out of sorts. Still smiled and greeted them, sat down, and looked at the menu, and it was only when they nearly had to drag a response out of him that Charlie realized he was uncharacteristically quiet. Normally one to steer the conversation, Carlton almost seemed hesitant to add to it.

Jessica noticed it too but got distracted when Marla arrived, and with Lamar and John coming in together shortly afterwards there wasn't any time to ask him what was wrong without putting him on the spot. Charlie decided to keep an eye on him as they continued catching up. Though it was a little hard when John slid into the booth beside her and rested an arm along the back of her seat. It was hard to stay focused after that.

So, for a little while, Charlie decided to just indulge in spending time with her friends. Doing so giving her plenty of time to finish her meal without such a serious topic hanging over the table. It had been ages since she had French toast, the last time being once when Aunt Jen made it. The thought made her a little somber but she recovered quickly. She was in good enough company to do that.

Good company whose help she still needed. Charlie eventually asked, "Everyone's heard about the animal attacks and those women who were killed?"

Everyone unanimously agreed, except Jessica who just groaned, and Carlton who tacked on a longer answer.

"I know all the details," Carlton suddenly revealed. Everyone looked to him with slight surprise. "Where they found them and what happened to them. Even that girl who died last night."

"There was another one last night?!" Charlie was shocked. He gave a quick nod. "Where was she…?"

"They found her out in that field beside the Maverik gas station. None of the cameras picked up anything. Guy inside the gas station said he thought he heard something but didn't see anything. They're still trying to figure out what killed her."

Charlie felt that sinking feeling return stronger than ever. That field was only about a street over from Mike's apartment; too close to be a coincidence. Though the reveal raised some questions.

"Wait a minute, didn't a bear kill her?" Lamar asked. "Or a mountain lion, or a pack of rabid coyotes? I thought they said the girls were attacked by wild animals. I don't think their exact cause of death matters."

"Well, in this case it does, because she didn't have a scratch on her," Carlton revealed to everyone's surprise. "…Okay, no, she did have some scratches on her, but none that would've killed her. She had a broken wrist, bruises, scrapes, cuts, but nothing that should've killed her."

"How is that possible? They've got to have some idea what killed her. Are they just thinking its internal injuries and don't want to say anything until the autopsy comes out?" Jessica pried. Carlton seemed a little uneasy and she picked up on it, narrowing her gaze suspiciously. "You know _all_ the details?"

Carlton's eyes darted around to the other patrons of the restaurant to make sure they weren't listening. Then he leaned in and lowered his voice to a whisper.

"When they found her, she had this sludge just pouring out of her mouth. It was this sort of thick, black, glue-looking stuff, and it smelled like plastic. Apparently, there was so much of it in her lungs that she weighed something like ten pounds more than what was on her driver's license."

"Carlton…" Marla said warily. She sounded unsure of whether this was a joke or not. From her face she looked like she wanted it to be one.

"I'm dead serious," the redhead said. Now it was clear why he was acting so strangely, and it was only punctuated by what he revealed next. "My folks got into it this morning. I guess a bunch of women suddenly getting killed by "animals" that nobody can find is a big deal," Carlton said sarcastically, even adding in the air quotes. "They were throwing around the words "Mandatory Curfew" a lot."

"Oh my gosh, this is just- this is horrible," Marla said. She sounded thoroughly shaken, but it was nothing compared to Charlie, who had grown silent as she pondered what this all meant.

That was when John noticed the unsettled look on her face. All he needed was one glimpse of it and knew something more was wrong. He turned to her fully and quietly asked, "What happened?"

"Sammy saw something last night," Charlie began. Apparently, she didn't keep her voice low enough as the others heard and looked towards her. She spoke directly to John, knowing they would listen. "Sammy said that around five in the morning he started hearing scratches and noises outside, like an animal searching around for a way in… But he doesn't think they were animals. He thinks they were animatronics."

"Animatronics? You mean like Baby?" John asked. Just the name seemed to make everyone more concerned, but Charlie shook her head.

"No. He said it didn't sound like Baby and I think he'd know since they were in the fire together. I slept through the whole thing but I know it happened. I found this strange patch of dirt outside that looked like someone dug a hole and filled it back up, and one of the things Sammy said was that he heard them digging in the dirt," she explained.

"Now that's weird. That's not anything I've heard," Carlton said with furrowed brows.

"It had to be connected somehow. Mike said its never happened before and it just seems too coincidental that the same thing scratching on the windows was also digging out the lawn."

"Wait, Mike?" John asked in confusion. "You don't mean Michael Afton, right?"

"I mean Schmidt. That's his real name," Charlie explained. "He was calling the landlord when I left to ask if it was something to do with the septic tank-."

"Wait a minute, why was Schmidt at your house?" Jessica asked in confusion, starting to catch on faster than the others.

Not wanting to give her the wrong idea, Charlie clarified, "He wasn't. I spent the night over at his apartment to be with Sammy." It was only the silence after she said this that made her consider that maybe that wasn't the right thing to say. The range of emotions varied from Jessica's disbelief to John's eyebrows shooting nearly into his hairline. "Okay, it sounds a lot worse than it is… Carlton, don't give me that look."

"No look," Carlton said. He turned away with _that look_ still very much on his face. Everyone else seemed to process it slowly.

Finally, Jessica spoke, "…My dorm's not that small, Charlie. I've seen Sammy, I'm sure I can fit him in there." Charlie sent her an unamused look.

"You've seen the elusive Sammy? How did you manage that?" Marla asked, surprised.

"By complete accident yesterday afternoon, and he's not nearly as scary as Carlton made him out to be. He kind of looks like a big… What do they call those things, the monkeys with the white and brown bodies and the long legs- sock monkeys? He looks like a sock monkey." Jessica then turned back to Charlie. "You could've brought the sock monkey to my place, Charlie!"

"It's not that big of a deal! All that happened was that I fell asleep on his couch while he was at work and slept all night. Sammy was there the whole time battling the creatures of the night," Charlie explained. She looked to John whose brows were slowly lowering back down. "Trust me, I didn't plan on falling asleep there. It was a total accident."

"I trust you," John agreed. "…Can't say I trust Schmidt all that much. Especially now that I know his alias."

"I didn't take you as the jealous type," Charlie teased with a coy smile. It grew more assuring as she took his hand under the table and squeezed. Though then that smile began to fade. "But those things were still out there. I don't know if they targeted the apartment on purpose or if it was just coincidental, but either way they were too close…" She inhaled deeply and looked past to Carlton. "Carlton, you know more about these cases than any of us… Do you think they're animatronics?"

"I… Yeah. You know what? Yeah, I do, because I know it's not an animal," Carlton admitted, returning to previous seriousness. "They're targeting girls who are all about the same age and all live close to each other or were somehow right in that area. There's no way these are animal attacks." This sent an uneasy silence over the table as everyone realized he was right.

"So, what do we do?" John asked. "Do we go to Clay and tell him about what happened at Schmidt's?"

"I don't know if we could without bringing up Sammy," Charlie said. "Even if we did, what could we say? Clay's not stupid. If we're seeing connections to these possibly being animatronic attacks then so is he."

"For starters we're all going to have to be more careful," Jessica said firmly. She crossed her arms and lowered her eyes in thought. "No going out at night- even if it's early, locking our doors and windows, and Charlie, if you hear anything like that again or Sammy does, you've got to call the police and get them to see them."

"Hey, you know, you should get a camera," Lamar chimed in. Marla furrowed her brows but he quickly explained. "The cops around here don't tend to do anything unless they have direct evidence. If you can get even a single picture of one of these things, they won't be able to write you off." While it was a good idea, something he said got Charlie to thinking.

" _Direct evidence… Maybe there's something the cops missed?"_ Charlie looked back to Carlton again and asked, "So, you know where the other crime scenes were?"

Less than thirty minutes later, after finishing up at the restaurant and leaving, they drove out to the park where the first victim had been found. The crime scene had already been cleaned up and the only sign it had ever been there was from leftover police tape in the bushes. It made sense considering that they weren't treating this like a murder, but it also meant that finding evidence was going to be harder.

"Charlie, come take a look at this," John called from further down the tree line. She headed over and found him looking at something on the ground. "Is this what you saw outside of Schmidt's apartment?"

There was a large patch of dirt on the ground that looked almost identical to the one outside of Schmidt's apartment. Save that it looked a little bigger around and more faded. Charlie nodded stiffly.

"Yeah, it looks just like it. Almost looks like something was buried there… Should we try to dig it up?"

"We can try. Let me check my truck, I've got some tools in the back that we can use," John offered. He went to go check, but before he got back there came another call.

"Guys, I found something!" Marla called. They hurried over to where she was, standing beside a thick, gnarled tree a little ways into the thicket. The dirt around its base was still soggy with broken pieces of tree bark dropped on it. There on the tree was what looked like a faint claw mark, though it was hard to see when all the bark had been shucked off. "It… Kind of looks like a bear. They're known to mark trees."

"I don't know. Something about this seems weird. This is pretty low on the tree for a bear," Jessica explained. She looked over the damaged tree. "Now I'm not a bear expert, but I'm pretty sure that they stretch up on the tree to mark it, and it looks like…" She traced the grooves with her fingers; the claw mark moved horizontally. "It scraped it from this way. From beside the tree."

"So… Translate. What does that mean?" Carlton asked.

"I'm not entirely sure. Not yet at least, but I know it was standing _here_ , I know it scratched like _this_ , and that means… It probably isn't a bear," Jessica concluded. "But it's not enough to round up the cops for."

Marla and Carlton both nodded in understanding as Lamar jotted down their finding in a notebook. Charlie eyed the markings on the wood for a moment longer before John came up beside her and offered her a masonry trowel. Hers looked much newer than the one he wielded, probably recently bought as a replacement. It would be a hard dig with such small tools but was than wasting time driving to buy one.

The upturned earth was packed in as they tried to dig it up. Not nearly as soft as the patch outside of Mike's apartment had looked, but she supposed looks could be deceiving. Eventually the others came over to watch as they slowly dug up the filled hole with baited breaths. Everyone, Charlie included, had a deep fear that there would be a body hiding underneath but nobody said it.

It was when they had made a hole almost a foot deep that they started to suspect there wasn't anything buried there. John was the one to point this out first, "I don't think there's anything down there."

"I guess not," Charlie said hesitantly as she crouched beside the hole. In hindsight, it didn't make much sense for animatronics to bury something any further than this. Or bury anything at all if she really thought about it, and the footprints in the dirt made her wonder if it had been the cops who filled it up. "…Maybe this is something else? It could be like the tree; it could be a marker."

"Let's hope not if there's one of these sitting outside Schmidt's place," John said as he stood. He offered Charlie a hand to help her up. "There might be something deeper, but we're not going to find it without either three decent shovels or one moderately functional backhoe, and I'm not looking for a scuffle with the parks department."

"We can check the field beside the gas station once the police let up. Until then… What now?" she asked him, then looked to her friends for answers. They seemed just as torn as she was, save Lamar who was back to writing down their findings in his notebook.

"Well, the way I see it, we have two routes we can take," Jessica said. "We can look up the girls and see if they share anything in common, see if they were targeted or if it was a coincidence, and we can research and see if anything like this has happened before."

"Yeah, it's like that movie where the bat man wakes up every twenty years, goes on a killing spree eating people, and then goes back to sleep at the next new moon or something… Which, now that I'm thinking about it, is starting to look like a real possibility," Carlton remarked. He got an unamused look from Marla and flashed her his first smirk of the day. "Remember, the girl who screams loudest always dies first."

"Then I'd be watching out if I were you," Marla retorted and poked him in the side. Didn't stifle that smug look, and it didn't fade until he looked at Jessica and saw her eyeing him.

"Oh no, what's that look mean?" he asked cautiously. As though he already knew what she was going to ask.

"Usually it means: "Why don't you go ask your dad for more info, because I know you'll come up with a good enough excuse to get it", but it could really mean anything," Jessica clarified.

Carlton was unamused. "Because I'm not tiptoeing around the house enough as it is. I hit the wrong chord and they start fighting again, and I'd say we've got one fight left before they start talking divorce," he vented. She looked a little sympathetic, they all did, but didn't budge. "I'll do it. Just give me a little time to figure it out. I'll get something by tomorrow."

"Sounds like a plan. The rest of us could head to the library and see what we can find there. They have a pretty dense section on the history of Hurricane."

"You guys go ahead. We'll catch up later," John suddenly suggested. Charlie was surprised by the offer, but the others didn't seem too concerned by it. It wasn't until they were heading back to the cars- John had drove her there- that he explained himself. "I thought maybe you could use a few minutes to chill out. You started fiddling with your sleeves."

"Again? Gah…" Charlie barely noticed her nervous ticks but John noticing them was downright embarrassing. "I'm just a little tense."

"I know," John said with a lightly amused smile. "I think they've got this covered for now. Do you want to hang out for a little while?"

She knew she wasn't going to be great company with these findings fresh in her mind, but after everyone's reaction to her staying over at Mike's she felt like she owed it to John to make the attempt, so she agreed.

They drove to the reservoir just south of the city. It was the perfect day for it; the clear blue sky reflected off the water and the people at the campsite gave the illusion of safety. It felt miles away from the town even though it was barely outside of it, and they walked along the edge of the water over sand and stones, talking about whatever came to mind that didn't involve the attacks, the house, or Aunt Jen.

She found herself fighting distracting thoughts but kept it together for the most part. The highlight being when they made it to cliffs of stone and climbed to the top to sit on the edge, letting their legs dangle to the water below and their hands conjoin. During this they were silent, staring out at the water together and just embracing the view. It was the closest she got to a true escape.

It was in moments like this that Charlie felt an intense longing. She didn't know for what.

At the end of their would-be date, John offered again for her to bring Sammy and come stay at his place. She told him she would think about it and assured him that tonight she would have a better plan for where she was going to go, even if it meant leaving Sammy at Schmidt's.

By that afternoon, she was back at Schmidt's apartment and too busy refocusing her efforts on rewiring Ella. She had her spread out on the dining room table like it was an operating table and was working with thick gloves and a slew of tools, including wire clippers and three differently sized pliers. It felt good to get back to work.

Not much had come out about the attacks since the park visit that morning. The library didn't have any clues for them to find, Carlton hadn't gotten back to them yet, and the news had been on all day without one word on the attacks. Mike had been watching it while he waited to leave for work, already in uniform but starting at a later shift. Long story short, everything had been quiet.

She was currently trying to judge whether to strip or try to replace an old wire that led to what looked like a corroded voice box when her phone rang. She set everything aside and answered quickly. "Hello?"

"Hey there, Charlie."

She tensed up at the somber voice on the line. "Oh, uh… Hey, Aunt Jen."

"I was just… Calling to make sure you're alright and that you're safe." Jen sounded awkward, like she was the one walking on eggshells this time, or like she really didn't know what to say.

"I am. I've just been staying with a friend," Charlie answered honestly.

"That's good. Just be careful going out at night." Apparently, Jen knew about the attacks, but she sounded less like she was concerned and more like she was trying to advance the conversation. She knew Charlie well enough to know she wouldn't be running around at night.

"I will."

"You know if you need somewhere to go you can always come home."

"I know, Aunt Jen. Thanks." She paused a long moment. "…And I'm sorry."

"I'm sorry too... Sometime when you're ready, we can sit down and talk through some things."

"That sounds good. I love you, Aunt Jen."

"I love you too, Charlie."

The whole conversation felt so painfully awkward and yet such a relief. All the guilt about the fight with Aunt Jen was gone, even though she knew this didn't mean they were finished with the house. She was still prepared to argue her case for the house, but at least this meant the silence was over. Charlie just hoped the silence wasn't only over to try and sway her on the house.

She felt like someone else was in the room and looked to the kitchen door to see that Sammy was floating there. He must've overheard the conversation, or at least heard her say Jen's name.

"That was Aunt Jen, she wants to patch things up. No word on the house though," Charlie explained. She put her glove and safety glasses back on, already preparing to return to her work on Ella. Sammy drifted over beside her and she noticed his smile was slightly disturbed, perhaps out of worry. "I'll go see her tomorrow and see if I can get through to her. Not sure what I'm going to do tonight yet."

"You can just crash here if you want," Mike suddenly chimed in. Charlie hadn't even realized he was there or listening in on them. "I'm leaving soon and I'm getting back late, so no big deal."

"Thanks, but we might be looking at the long haul. I can't just live on your couch," Charlie said with an amused smile. "As tempting as it is."

Mike shrugged noncommittally. "Your choice, I'm just putting it out there." He grabbed a bottle of water out of the fridge and headed back out into the living room. "Just don't leave the doll here if you go."

"Which one?" Charlie asked back jokingly. This got a more honest smile out of Sammy and he slid in closer to look down at Ella. She pointed in at the wire she had been working on. "Save or clip?" He gave a low ringing hum before tapping on the roll of electrical tape: save. She took his advice and continued to work.

…

Mike had gotten home an hour later than he usually did and it showed on his face. He came in, tossed his hat on the back of the armchair, and dropped into it while fixing his hair in an almost agitated fashion. Charlie looked to be asleep on the couch while Sammy was sitting on the floor with an almost distant look on his face. He acknowledged Mike when he came in but now his glowing eyes seemed to be scanning the windows.

Charlie unexpectedly rolled over to face him. "How'd it go?" she asked.

"Godawful. Some kids snuck in and I had to chase them all over the mall. It wasn't until I lied and said I could arrest them that I got them out of there," Mike vented. He gave a frustrated huff and sunk further into the armchair. "Did I wake you up?"

"No, I was awake. I'm just having a little trouble sleeping."

Mike nodded and looked back towards Sammy to see that he was still acting strangely. He nodded towards the Puppet, "What's up with him?"

"He's worried about those things coming back. Honestly, we both are," Charlie admitted. She looked down at her brother and wished she could ease him, but efforts to do so earlier had failed. The only way he could feel secure was if he continued to stare down the windows like someone was about to break in, listening for even the slightest sound outside. She turned back over. "I going to try to get some sleep while I can."

"Sure. Night, Charlie," Mike said as he looked towards the TV. He considered offering her his bed even though he really didn't want to give it up but decided not to with the defense that it would be too weird. He slouched further against the chair and watched the muted screen with glazed eyes, putting off getting back up for as long as he could.

Sammy noticed that Mike was starting to drift and normally would've roused him and nudged him towards his room, trying to show his appreciation for his care of Charlie by returning the concern, but having Mike close made him feel safer. Having everyone in one room made it easier to watch them and know that they were safe.

He was so on edge that he could rip up the carpet, or at least start blaring music before it was necessary. The Puppet forced himself to keep calm and keep listening as midnight crept in. Occasionally he heard a noise; wind rustling leaves, a creak somewhere in the apartment, a thump- or was it a car passing, a clink- or maybe Mike's keys as he shifted in his chair, but none of the noises lasted.

As one o'clock arrived, Sammy finally began to ease just a little bit. All the noises outside seemed to fade away and he was lulled into a sense of security. It was an hour after midnight and nothing was here. Maybe it really had been wild animals. Maybe they had moved on. Sammy leaned back against the couch.

Then sat up rigidly when he felt a familiar _pulse_ inside his head. He only had a moment to consider what it meant before the silence was broken by the sound of shattering glass.

He hadn't even heard them come up. _They had already been there._


	6. Monsters

Charlie and Mike were ripped from sleep by the loud shattering of glass. Mike, who had been in a lighter doze, roused faster and leapt to his feet.

"What was that?!" he exclaimed. He could hear more cracking and scratching and ran for the kitchen door to see what was trying to get in. One look at the arm reaching inside caused his blood to run cold.

It wasn't the hand of a burglar but something entirely inhuman. Matted, dirty fabric stretched over a boney frame in place of skin, larger than any human's. Blades like claws tore out of the tips and were at least six inches in length, digging into the wood of the door as it tried to feel for the handle. Its arm was thick and tears in the fabric revealed glimpses of dull metal underneath.

There was no doubt about it now; they were being terrorized by an animatronic, and a gruesome one from the design of its hand alone.

Suddenly Mike was grabbed by the arm and yanked back into the living room by the Puppet. It snapped him out of his daze at seeing what was trying to break into his apartment. "Do you see that thing?!"

"What is it?!" Charlie asked in equal panic. Even though she hadn't seen it, she could hear it breaking in and see how the others were reacting. She knew it was serious and yanked her boots on over her pajama pants and her jacket over her t-shirt, barely prepared for whatever was coming. She barely had enough time to grab her bag before Mike ran for the front door.

"Some kind of animatronic mutant- Come on, we've got to get the hell out of here! It's almost through!" he yelled. He had watched the clawed hand close on the doorhandle and break it off with minimal effort. He knew that there was no way to stop whatever was coming in and instead threw open the front door and prepared to run out. He barely caught himself before he could step down on a bear trap. " _What_?!"

On closer inspection, and Mike didn't get much of one, the beartrap was not a traditional one. The metal prongs that stretched out from the trigger in the middle were shaped like endoskeleton fingers, each ending with a jutting blade like the ones on the creature breaking in the back door. Charlie came up behind him and saw it as well, eyes widening in horror.

"God almighty," Mike choked. He carefully lowered his foot beside the bear trap before giving a sweeping kick and sliding it across the porch. "I could've lost a foot just then!"

Charlie took in the strange shape of the bear trap and noticed the chain attached to it. She followed it across the porch, across the yard, and into the large hole sitting in the center of the yard.

Suddenly the backdoor splintered and in a second Charlie and Mike were deafened by a blare of distorted music and static, then were shoved out the door by the source of said noise, Sammy. He was just as panicked as they were and yanked the door closed behind them, if only to buy them a few seconds. They had to get to the car.

Before Mike could rush off the porch, Charlie grabbed him by the arm and firmly warned him, "Don't get close to that hole!" Up until then he hadn't seen it and he clenched his teeth once he realized it was there.

"Yeah, no problems here," he said. He then stepped down from the porch and began to cautiously step out into the yard. He looked around the edges of the house to make sure they wouldn't get ambushed by anything else and then began to walk past the hole. He gave it a wide berth but looked towards it warily and thought he saw something inside.

Charlie took one look at Sammy and knew he was panicking. Not only was that noise still coming from him, a frantic mess of chimes and mechanical whirrs, but he was twitching and staring down the front door like he was waiting for something to come out. Charlie grabbed his wrist and led him down the steps. He turned to watch the door but followed her without resistance.

They had only just started to cross the yard when Mike finally made out what he was seeing. He swore and broke into a sprint, calling over his shoulder, "The hole has teeth!"

Right as Charlie was running past and close enough to see, the hole exploded in dirt as something burst out of the ground. She staggered into the grass as she watched a hulking mass climb out of the ground. Both she and Sammy stared in equal horror at what had been buried underneath the ground and now climbed to its feet.

It stood at least seven feet tall with a frame so wide that it nearly blocked the streetlight's glow. Its body was thick with dirt, but as clumps fell away it revealed old, moldy fabric underneath of a gruesome greenish-brown color. One arm ended in a bizarrely shaped claw that matched the bear trap and the other, predictably, ended in the chain leading to the porch.

Through a gaping hole in its chest both could see a mechanism of coiled chain. As it staggered to its feet, the mechanism activated and reeled the bear trap over where it latched in at its wrist, revealing it as a second deformed hand. As horrifying as it was to piece together that the bear trap was _part of the animatronic_ , it was nothing compared to its face.

It resembled Freddy in a general sense and was only recognizable because of their history with it. Its eyes were beady and black dots with the fabric around them hanging down like bags, revealing a glimpse of its endoskeleton skull underneath. Its mouth was massive and hung wide open to reveal a dark crater inside. Dirt clumps falling out between razor sharp teeth- shaped like teeth but resembling razor blades.

It occurred to Charlie then that it wasn't supposed to styled like a bear, or Freddy. It was styled like a living, walking bear trap.

It let out a deep groan that echoed through its gaping mouth and charged them. Charlie spun on her heel to run only to be shoved so harshly that she staggered, but not by Bear Trap Freddy. She looked back in time to see Sammy leap for the animatronic, hitting it full force in its gaping chest. The bear swung its arms closed over him in a hug, but he slipped down through its grasp and crawled around its legs.

"Sammy!" Charlie cried. She could only watch with dread as he narrowly missed another swing of the bear's claws, watching as he continued to circle through and around his legs. She only realized what he was doing once she saw light glistening off one of his strings. All the while he played music that resembled a quick tempo version of Pop Goes the Weasel.

"Charlie, get in the car!" Mike yelled. He had gotten into his car and started it up, and with hers trapped it looked like they would be using that to escape.

When she turned to him, she realized he was looking back at the apartment. She looked back as she ran and could see a large mass in the living room window. It had torn down the curtains but she still had trouble making out what it was, save that it looked to also be a bear. She leapt into the passenger's seat and called for her brother, "Sammy! Come on!"

Sammy worked even faster and slid through Bear Trap Freddy's legs one more time before crawling out onto the grass beside the hole. He tightened his strings before springing backwards towards the monstrosity and knocked it off its feet and onto its face. He rolled off quickly and began to untangle his strings.

There was another crash as the front window was shattered and with is Sammy felt that invasive feeling return stronger than ever. It was a pounding pulsing in his head that immediately filled him with panic. He fumbled with his strings, barely able to hear Charlie's calls over his frantic music, and not daring to look up at whatever was crawling through the window.

Finally, he detached himself and rushed to the car right as Charlie was getting back out to help him. She quickly opened the backseat door and he dove inside. She shut it, dropped back in, and slammed the door shut right as Mike peeled into reverse and tore off down the street.

Adrenaline was racing for everyone, even the one who didn't have it. Charlie struggled with the seatbelt with how her hands were shaking and pulled down the visor to see behind the car. She caught one last glimpse of the second bear before Mike peeled around the corner and drove off into the night. She took a deep breath and angled the mirror down towards her brother.

"Sam-Sammy, are you okay?" she asked. He didn't look okay. His music had silenced, save some out of tune noises, but now he was trying to squeeze down into the floorboards. Charlie caught on once she remembered that they hadn't had time to grab his blanket. "Here. Cover yourself with this." She slipped off her jacket and handed it back to him where he tried to hide underneath it.

Suddenly the car lurched to the side and she snapped her gaze forward again. She only now realized how fast Mike was driving. "Mike, you're going to have to slow down," she told him.

"How am I supposed to calm down?! Or slow down- Hold on." Finally, Mike started to take his foot off the accelerator until he was only a little above the speed limit. His eyes were wide and his fingers were clenched white on the steering wheel. "I worked at Freddy's for years, _years_ , and I never had anything follow me home like that! That was a Freddy- I'd recognize it anywhere!"

"It did look like Freddy…" Charlie said quietly. She processed it slowly; it was a hard fact to swallow, especially when it was clear that these were the creatures behind the attacks, they had to be.

Eventually Mike realized that he didn't know where he was going and parked in a laundry mat parking lot. By then he had driven up and down the roads and was somewhat more confident that they lost their pursuers, if they had even followed them out of the yard. He parked and shut the car off to reserve gas, then promptly dropped his head on the steering wheel. After a long pause, he gave a humorless chuckle.

"Looks like the mystery's solved: it was bears the whole time," Mike said with no amusement. His grimace slowly faded away as he tiredly added, "God, I wish it would've been mountain lions."

It only took a few seconds of thinking before Charlie put two and two together and came to a disturbing realization. "They never left last night… Sammy, when you heard them last night, they never left! They just buried themselves! That's how nobody's been seeing them!" she exclaimed. She looked back at Sammy who was peeking out from between the seats with an equally alarmed look. "That spot in the park must've been another hole that was filled up. If there had still been something in there, John and I… We could've been killed."

Sammy's eyes widened on his mask with a newfound horror. Now it all made since- that noise he heard was them burying themselves. That whole time they had been only a few feet outside.

Charlie turned to Mike and asked, "Mike, are you sure there weren't any more spots around the apartment?"

"…Yeah, there was," he admitted in a muffle.

"There _was_? Why didn't you say anything when I told you about the park?" she asked in alarm. All the while thinking, _"I walked past that hole four times. It could've grabbed me and dragged me under any time…"_

"Because it was all the way down at the end of the other apartment and I still hadn't gotten any clear answers from the landlord. He was still acting like it could've been the water company. Which, by the way, he never called me back about. Glad to know this is the service I get for paying my rent on time…" Mike vented as he lifted his head from the steering wheel. Immediately his face fell to utter dismay. "I'd bet my paycheck that they followed me back from the mall."

"What? Why do you think that?"

"There's an abandoned Freddy's inside of the mall. I don't know much about what went down there, but I've got half a mind to believe that it's the reason the place never opened… Yeah, that's an appropriate reaction," he said, looking between the twins' matching looks of horror. "I don't know how they followed me home though. The mall's halfway across town."

Sammy started to slowly shake his head, then did so with more certainty. The fear on his face dropped to a more pensive look as he looked to Charlie. He then started to count on his fingers to her. _"One, two, three."_ Then made a knife stabbing motion. _"Murders."_ She thought about the three murders.

"…No, wait. That can't be it. That doesn't explain the murders. If they had been following you, they would've happened between the mall and the apartment, and I think they would've reached the apartment sooner. And why would they only come out now?"

"Maybe you've got a point… It wouldn't be the only closed Freddy's in town," Mike agreed. He didn't seem totally convinced, but it was clear that Sammy was.

The Puppet began to signal his sister with his newest suspicions. He made an upwards clawing motion, " _Bear trap,"_ waved a finger and shook his head, _"not,"_ then made a motion like holding a microphone and tilting his head back, _"singer."_ Charlie pieced it together quickly: _"Trap not performer."_ It was clear that the animatronic was built to kill, not to perform. That's when it suddenly came to her.

"He's saying that these aren't normal animatronics. They were purposefully built to attack humans, as we saw from the bear traps… And I think I know exactly where it came from, Afton Robotics," Charlie decided. Mike raised a brow as Sammy listened with interest. "That's why the cops were clearing it out because they were searching for dangerous bots. What if they accidentally let something else out?"

"But that was months ago," Mike pointed out.

"But maybe they only just got out. Maybe- Maybe something with the tornado. They popped up right around then and Afton Robotics wasn't exactly the sturdiest structure. All it would take is the wrong door to open and they could come right out, or even dig out maybe," Charlie explained. With this seeming more likely, she finished with a determined, "We need to tell the police."

"You think the police are actually going to believe any of this?" Mike asked doubtfully. He folded his arms tightly over his chest. "These things could've been walking around the city for days killing people and they still think it's wild animals. They'll take one look around the apartment and stick to their guns, because unless Freddy's still standing there when they get there, they won't buy our story."

"Maybe, but you remember that I said my friend's dad was the police chief? I'm sure I told you that. His name's Clay and he knows about the animatronics. We can go to him," Charlie offered. Mike scoffed a little.

"Ah yes, _Chief Burke._ I remember him from the two hours of questioning I had to sit through after the pizzeria fire. I'm _sure_ he's going to believe me," he said sardonically. "He didn't even believe me when I told him I wasn't Michael Afton and I had a social security number backing me up." Sammy reached out and patted his arm sympathetically. Mike exhaled slowly and said, "But maybe he'll listen to you."

"Clay's stubborn but he's not stupid. He knows about Baby and the haunted animatronics, he knows about Freddy's history, and I'm sure he knows something else is going on here," Charlie assured him. Though his words had shaken her confidence a little. They needed evidence that didn't involve risking a cop's life digging in one of those holes- which was exactly how she remembered the camera.

"Hold on, I bought a disposable camera on my way home," Charlie said. She leaned forward and started to dig into her bag. "The lighting's not going to be great, but it's better than nothing. They might still be at the apartment and if we drive by quick, I can snap a picture as evidence to give to Burke."

"Why not? Like you said, it's better than nothing. And I'd love to see one of those overstuffed meat machines try and chase this car down the street," Mike agreed. All of them were aware of the risks.

Charlie got out the disposable camera and set it in her lap before reaching back in for a notebook and pencil for Sammy. Most of them were filled up with school notes but eventually she found one only filled halfway and folded it over to a clean page. It was while she was taking out a pencil that a hand suddenly landed on her shoulder.

It was Sammy and his grip was like a vice, uncharacteristic of him. Charlie knew right away that something was wrong, even before she lifted her head to look. The Puppet was raised higher and staring past the dashboard with his eyes glowing with ominous fixation. Mike started to straighten in his seat as he stared out the windshield.

"There's no way that can be Freddy," he muttered under his breath. "Charlie, get up. Quick."

Charlie didn't need to be told twice and sat up in her seat. She looked out of the car and saw what they were looking at and the fear from earlier quickly returned.

There was a large form staggering through the bushes at the edge of the parking lot. It stumbled out, its body weaving and swaying as it tried to regain footing. The motion reminding Charlie of the shuffle she would see zombies do in movies. It was barely illuminated by the moonlight and faded glow from the lights of the town, now revealing that though it was the size of Bear Trap Freddy, it wasn't him.

The long ears on top of its head gave away that it was Bonnie, though the rest of its body barely resembled him. It had a bulbous belly that was made of metal with dark blue or purple paint peeling off it. Its arms and legs were covered in filthy fabric that tried to match the color, save that it was stained and aged into a nastier hue. One arm looked typical, hanging limply with sharp, needle-like claw at its fingertips.

The other arm, its right arm, was stuck up at its side and bent crookedly. It almost seemed to be stuck like that. Its right hand looked to be broken off and all that remained was the end of a tube or pipe sticking out. It seemed to be dripping something dark and thick. On closer inspection, this same fluid was drooling out from between its sharp teeth which were borne and clenched tightly shut.

Its eyes were glassy, black orbs, larger than Freddy's but not by much. Once they focused on the car though, the bunny creature began to shuffle and wobble a little faster. It was its right leg that was giving it trouble, Charlie realized. It was stuff stiff just like its arm, and that fluid oozed out from holes in its cloth.

Suddenly she remembered what Carlton had said about the sludge found in the one victim's mouth and too much made sense.

Nobody had to tell Mike to start the car. The moment the beast started to wobble faster, he turned the key in the ignition only to have it rev up and then die. He tried again and a second time the car failed to turn over, all while Bonnie was getting closer to the car. He began to swear profusely as he continued to try and get the car to turn on.

Charlie took her chance and lifted the disposable camera to start snapping photos. Her jaw was so tight that it was beginning to hurt and her breathing was starting to quicken. Sammy's frantic music filled the car again and she reached back to grab his arm just in case he was planning to rush out and fight this one off too.

Finally, the car sputtered to life and Mike threw it into reverse. Right at this moment Bonnie jerked its stuck arm upright and fluid spurted from the pipe in its wrist and splattered onto the windshield. It was dark and thick, and sizzled lightly against the glass like heated tar. Mike peeled back across the parking lot as fast as he could.

"Mike- _Mike_!" Charlie warned as they got dangerously close to driving over the curb and into a fence. Mike caught himself, still swearing frantically under his breath, and sped out of the parking lot. They left the glue leaking rabbit behind in their wake.

Only now did Mike see the state of his windshield. He turned on the wipers only for them to get two inches into the goop and get stuck, breaking off from their base. "Come on!" he cried. Then rolled down the window and stuck his head out to see where he was driving. "What even is this garbage?!"

"I don't know, but I- I know was used in one of the murders!" Charlie said. She was trying to stay calm but it was nearly impossible. "What does this mean? Does this mean there's a Foxy and Chica out here too?!"

"Yeah, and knowing our luck they've got some sort of tracking signal on us! How in the hell did Bonnie find us all the way out here?! I didn't see him outside the apartment!"

Even though Mike was ranting, he raised a few good points. Points that Charlie couldn't even think of when they were speeding down the road and the car was filled with panic and blasting 'Pop Goes the Weasel'.

"Sammy, it's okay. We're getting away, we're safe," she assured her brother, still holding his wrist but now loosening her grasp. He quickly locked his fingers in with hers and gave a discontent static in his music. "I'm going to need you to try and quiet down so I can call Clay. If you can," she coaxed gently. He struggled to do so but barely managed it.

"I don't even know where I'm going here," Mike mumbled under his breath. His voice strained as he continued to drive with his head out the window. "And we've only got a half a tank of gas left to decide…"

Sammy reached out and rested his free hand on Mike's arm. The man glanced down at it and assumed it was an attempt to comfort him. It didn't really help considering the circumstances, but it did make him a little more aware that he needed to keep his cool. He took a deep breath and continued to drive.

Charlie tried Carlton's number twice to no had hoped that Clay would've woken up and answered the phone, but after the second call it seemed much less likely, and if Clay had an emergency or work number then she didn't know it. They had to come up with another plan; parking somewhere and trying to wait it out was no longer an option and neither was driving all night.

Aunt Jen's house was further outside of Hurricane but bringing Mike and _Sammy_ there and having to explain that they were chased by rabid animatronics- it couldn't work. Neither would driving back to the house with its broken windows and weakened structure. She was grasping at straws, so she called John hoping to get some help. He didn't answer. She called Jessica and she didn't either.

She was just about to call Carlton again when the phone rang. She eagerly answered it, "Hello?"

"Charlie? What's going on?" It was Jessica and she sounded half asleep.

"Yes, I did! Listen, I know this is sudden, but I need help. I'm sorry to get you into this, but we were just attacked by killer animatronics and we're driving around Hurricane with nowhere to go. I can't get ahold of Clay, I can't call the police, and we can't stop the car because one of them already tracked us down," Charlie rushed out. She knew it was too much to dump on her at once, and Jessica processed it slowly.

"Wait, you… Wait, what?! Are you serious?!" Jessica woke up very quickly at that. "Where are you?!"

"We're at- We're somewhere in town. I don't know exactly where we are, but we need to find somewhere to go. We already stopped once and somehow they found us."

"Oh my gosh. Okay, uh, hold on…" Jessica paused for a moment to get her thoughts together. Charlie's heart was still pounding in her throat as she waited for something, even though she knew how unlikely it was that her friend could help her in this situation. Then again, Jessica tended to surprise her. "Come to the university. I'll meet you out in the parking lot and let you into my dorm. You'll be safe here."

"I don't know. We think they're following us," Charlie warned.

"They're not going to be able to follow you out of town! And there's security on campus. You'll be okay, just try to get here as fast as you can. I'll be waiting outside."

"Okay, thank you… And could you maybe bring down a blanket? We couldn't grab a blanket to cover Sammy with before we left, and please be careful."

"I will, don't worry. You be careful too." The call ended right afterwards.

"Do you know where the university in St. George is?" Charlie asked Mike. He nodded and turned off the next road to head towards the highway. "It- It should be safe. Just being out of the city should be enough distance to give us some breathing room. Then we can get ahold of Clay, then we can figure out what we're going to do," she explained. It sounded more like she was convincing herself than him or Sammy.

As they drove past the Maverik gas station, Charlie tried to see if there were any filled holes in the field beside it. It was too dark to see through the thick grass.

It took about twenty minutes to get to St. George and the university. Normally she barely noticed the drive, but this time she found herself paying attention to exactly how far it was and taking comfort in every mile they put between them and Hurricane. Soon they were pulling into the parking lot outside of the dorms that Jessica lived with and drove around until they found her.

Jessica had gotten dressed, but it looked like she just threw on whatever she could grab and her hair was unbrushed. She was clutching a rolled-up comforter tightly. It took her a second to realize that Charlie was in the car that was pulling up because of the darkened-out windshield, but she rushed over the second she started coming out of the passenger side.

"Are you okay?" she asked. Charlie nodded and took the comforter. Jessica turned away so she could tend to Sammy and looked closer at the dark mass on the windshield, which had now hardened like a shell. She pointed at it and asked, "What is that?" with a tinge of disgust.

"That's all _Bonnie_ right there," Mike clarified. He punctuated the comment by slamming his door shut. He stood there with his hands on his hips and the most fed-up expression imaginable. Jessica raised a brow at him and he acknowledge her with a nod, "Hey. How're you doing?"

"Better than you guys apparently," Jessica said. She still managed a friendly smile. "I'm Jessica. You might not remember me, but we met at Freddy's. My friends and I came in to get a pizza, including Charlie."

"How could I forget? You were the oldest kids I ever seen and the only ones who gave me a tip over a dollar. Mike Schmidt," Mike said. He returned the smile momentarily before looking towards Charlie and Sammy, watching the Puppet get wrapped up. "We should probably get inside before anything else pops up," he said. Then looked back to Jessica and double-checked, "You said I could come inside?"

"Yes! You think I'd kick anyone out when they're being chased by crazy killer clowns?" Jessica asked. She then asked Charlie, "It _was_ Circus Baby, wasn't it?"

"It wasn't. It was much, much worse. I'll explain once we get inside," Charlie said cryptically. She then helped guide Sammy, who was completely cloaked in the blanket and hovering low to stay inconspicuous. Jessica nodded, Mike locked up the car, and the four headed up to the second floor and into the dorm room.

Charlie had been in Jessica's dorm room plenty of times. It was a small room with only enough room to fit a bed, a couch, and a cramped but tidy desk. There was a small sink by the door with a minifridge beside it and a microwave atop that. There was a single window and a door that led to a bathroom shared with a separate dorm room. Jessica didn't have a roommate.

While tight to fit three people and a puppet, being on the second floor and behind a door with a deadbolt almost made them feel a little more secure.

Charlie sat down on the bed and Jessica sat alongside her and put an arm around her shoulders. Mike practically collapsed onto the couch, covered his face with his hands, and continued reeling in silence. Finally, Sammy stayed up, still enwrapped tightly in the comforter, and moved to the window so that he could stare out at the road. His discomfort with Jessica was nothing compared to his paranoia of the animatronics somehow catching up to them.

"Okay, so start from the beginning," Jessica said. Charlie didn't need any more coaxing than and retold the whole sordid ordeal. Jessica listened intensely with her expression ranging from shock, to confusion, and to horror where it seemed to settle for the rest of the story. Charlie was almost surprised that Mike didn't chime in but she assumed that he was just too exhausted to do so.

"The plan from here is… There is no plan actually, but the closest thing we have to one is trying to hold out until morning and then going straight to Clay. He's the only one who will listen to us," Charlie finished. She glanced uncomfortably towards the window. "…Unless Freddy and Bonnie catch up with us. Then we'll need another plan fast."

"But that's not going to happen. There's no way they'd make it all this way, and even if they did, they couldn't get past security, let alone the stairs," Jessica said with false confidence. She squeezed Charlie's shoulder and the brunette sighed. "I'm just so glad that you got away and that you're here. I don't know where else you could've gone except the police station and with Sammy… Not the best idea."

"I didn't want to drag you into this," Charlie said apologetically.

"Please, if I had to be dragged into this, I wouldn't be studying Criminal Justice," Jessica said with a flash of a smile.

Charlie returned with a smaller one. "Thanks, Jess. I don't know what we would've done without you," she said. Then she looked past her to her brother still stationed at the window. "Sammy, we're going to be fine. Maybe you should sit down and rest while you can."

Sammy slid sideways onto the edge of the bed, still leaning out enough to continue staring out the window.

Charlie sent him a flat look before looking back to Jessica. "It has been a long night," she said.

"A long night that's about to turn into an extremely early morning," Mike muttered. He yanked off his jacket, pulled one of the couch pillows under his head to get more comfortable, and then draped the jacket over his face. "I'm going to try and get some sleep. I suggest you do the same, because he's going to be up all night," he said, pointing a thumb in Sammy's general direction.

"I will. I'll try," Charlie agreed. She didn't want to though. Just like Sammy, she didn't feel safe letting herself go back to sleep and putting herself at the mercy of the monsters outside.

Jessica stayed awake with her until she was tired enough to risk laying down on the bed. It was a mercifully dreamless sleep, but she knew the nightmares would be waiting for her when she woke up.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Mable: Bear Trap Freddy- buries self underground and uses detachable hands or open maw to catch prey. Glue Trap Bonnie- slows victims with a tar-like glue and suffocates them in his fluid. Unknown- Listening.


	7. Resemblance

Morning came too quickly. Jessica tried to tiptoe around quietly to gather her clothes but it was closing the bathroom door that woke both Charlie and Mike. The former opening her eyes to the comfort of warm sunlight on the walls and the latter sitting upright with a start as the jacket fell off his face. Mike sunk back down onto the couch with a tired groan while Charlie sat up to look for Sammy.

It didn't take her long to find him as he was sitting on the bed behind her, legs crossed and blanket still cocooned around him, finally relaxing now that Jessica left the room. She knew from one look at him that he hadn't slept, and though he didn't need as much as a human she did know he required some.

"Morning, Sammy," Charlie greeted with a stretch. He greeted her back with a smile and a caring chime. As she sat up the rest of the way, he wrapped his arms and blanket around her for a hug, which she returned. She could feel him leaning on her more than usual; definitely worn out.

"Did you get any sleep at all?" Charlie asked with concern. Sammy paused a long moment but then caved and shook his head. Then apologetically pressed his mask into her shoulder to not see her concern of disappointment. Of which her face showed more of the former than the latter. She patted his back and asked, "Maybe you can try to take a nap sometime today? I think we should be safe while it's daylight."

Though she didn't know this for certain. Her only hints to this being the case being that nobody saw the animatronics during the day and that Bear Trap Freddy had spent the day before outside, directly in the yard, and yet hadn't made any attempt to attack until once it got late at night. Even if it wasn't the case, she assumed they had a better chance during the day.

Sammy gave a sighing sound and nodded. They stayed like that for a few minutes and tried to decompress from the night before.

With a defeated huff, Mike finally sat up from the couch and tried to stretch the tightness out of his back. He looked over at the two and got a slight smile. It faded away as he rubbed his eyes and quickly fixed up his hair. Finally, he greeted them with a to-the-point, "Morning. What's the plan?"

"It kind of depends. Do you know if there's a place in town that down same-day photo developing?" Charlie asked. Mike considered it a second before shrugging. "Either way we need to see Clay. I know you two aren't on good terms, but I think you should come with me. It'll help get the point across."

"I'm going to have to. I'm going to have to file some sort of report on my apartment since the place's probably been cleaned out by now," Mike said tiredly. Though he sounded as sarcastic as usual, she could see a dejected look settle on his features and only now did she really think about what he was going through, having basically lost any security in his home and possibly his stuff.

"Maybe not. Someone might've called your Landlord by now, and it's not like the front door was left open, just unlocked… Things can be replaced, lives can't. If we would've stayed and tried to barricade in the house, they would've gotten to us. You made the right call in getting us out of there," Charlie reassured him.

"Yeah, I know…" he said. That didn't mean it was any easier to swallow. Sammy looked to him with a troubled look, both of worry and regret. He almost looked more upset for the man than he himself was.

Until Jessica came back out of the bathroom and he promptly had to pull the comforter back over his face. The blond noticed everyone awake and got a sheepish smile.

"I didn't wake everyone up, did I?" she asked. This received a couple of shakes of heads. "Oh, good! That's the last thing I wanted to do after last night's craziness. So… Do you guys want to get some breakfast? Mike, I think you look young enough that we could probably slip you into the cafeteria. They shouldn't ask for ID if you pay cash."

"Nah, I'm good. I'll get something later. You guys go ahead," Mike declined.

"Actually, I think I'm going to wait too. We really need to get to Clay's as soon as possible. Hopefully, we'll catch him before he leaves," Charlie said. Sammy turned slowly to look at her and then leaned down behind her and reached for her bag. Charlie didn't notice him as she continued, "We're going to need a way to move Sammy. I don't think we should leave him here alone."

"One of you told me he sleeps in boxes. Why don't we get a box and carry him out?" Mike asked.

"That's exactly what I was thinking. He doesn't need a large box either. If we could just get a carboard box about… This size." Charlie measured an invisible box with her hands, trying her best to mimic the size of the box Sammy used sometimes in her bedroom.

Jessica was caught between listening to Charlie and watching Sammy's long arm fish into her backpack. By now Charlie heard what her brother was doing but paid it no mind. Jessica looked back to her friend with a confident smile. "Sure thing! I'll go ask around and see if anyone has any moving boxes left."

She headed out of the room and shut the door behind her as Mike headed into the bathroom. Charlie turned back to Sammy only to have a meal bar thrust up towards her. She got a little smile.

"Okay, okay. Thanks." She accepted the bar and peeled the wrapper off, hesitating before she bit in. "…You know, maybe you should get one out for Mike."

Sammy held up a second bar and she gave him a thumbs up. Then, as soon as Mike walked out of the bathroom, the Puppet gave a sharp whistling noise and threw it to him. Or more so at him, hitting him in the chest before it dropped to the floor. He stared at it momentarily before picking it up, giving a dry thanks, and eating it without another word.

Jessica returned a few minutes later with a cardboard box that was only a little longer than Charlie had described. In short, it was perfect, and she sat it down beside the bed.

"There you go, Sammy! It looks like it's going to be a tight fit, but it's clean and sturdy," she said. He leaned over the bed to look at it, cloaked in the blanket again, and then climbed down off the bed to get a closer look. Jessica turned her attention back to Charlie who was getting a spare change of clothes from her bag, having thankfully replaced the last set. "Hey, maybe you should call John," the blond suggested.

Charlie inwardly flinched at the thought. She could just imagine that explanation now:

" _I was spending the night at Mike's house, again, when rabid robots broke down the doors and chased us across the city, and instead of calling the police we all piled into Jess' dorm room."_

She could already picture the look on his face, imagine the disappointment that he would never confess to. It was almost easier before they started dating because then she never had to answer questions she didn't want to or check in at inopportune times. Or worry about dragging him into something so dangerous when she knew he would throw himself in willingly.

"Or you don't have to. He's not going anywhere," Jessica said after the long silence. Though Charlie could see the questioning in her gaze when she looked to her.

"No, I know I should… Later. He's at work now, I don't want to have him worrying about me while he's working with power tools," Charlie agreed. Jessica gave her a somewhat doubtful look. "I'll call him as soon as we get finished with Clay, I promise," she said. The more concrete swear seemed to assuage Jessica and she let the subject drop. That, and her focus shifting on the shuffling noise in the blanket covered box.

Mike picked up the blanket partially, keeping it tented over him, as to let Sammy fold into the box. He then knelt and closed the box before moving the blanket and looking at the work, almost in disbelief that the Puppet was fitting in the tight space. He shrugged it off and hoisted it up without too much difficulty. It wasn't too much heavier than an average television.

It wasn't until they got out into the parking lot that Mike remembered the state of his car and immediately groaned so loudly that it could be heard halfway across the parking lot.

"Oh yeah, I forgot. My car is now completely undrivable," he vented as he lugged Sammy's box over to stare at the mess on the hood. "How am I supposed to get this off? I can't afford a new windshield. I can't even afford to get my alternator fixed and that's the thing that's going to get me stranded."

"I'll drive. We're all going to the same place anyways," Jessica offered.

"Thanks, but unless you plan on chauffeuring me to and from my apartment for the rest of the day, I'm still going to need a car."

"Then use mine," Charlie said. He almost looked a little surprised by the offer and she smiled. "You let me stay on your couch, I'm just returning the favor… And I don't mind having a personal driver."

"What? Me carrying around your brother isn't enough?" Mike quipped. He got a more honest smile afterwards. "You've got yourself a deal."

Jessica studied the dried mixture on the hood a little closer, tapping cautiously with her fingernail, but couldn't figure out what it was. "If you really want to get this stuff off, I'd say your best bet is probably kerosene, but you're not going to want to breathe in those fumes," she warned. Then she started off to her car, beckoning them with a wave. "In any case, let's get moving."

After another slow drive, they were back in Hurricane. Charlie didn't know what she was expecting to see when they got there but there wasn't much that had changed. It was as though the night before hadn't happened at all and, in a way, it was no different from the attacks and nights before it. It was an unsettling thought to know they had been there the whole time.

They pulled up to Carlton's house to see that Clay's car was parked in the driveway. Jessica pulled in behind it and they all started to get out of the car. Charlie quickly replaced Mike's place in the back so she could lean over and tap on the box that Sammy was in. The Puppet made a slow rattling sound, his half-asleep or tired noise.

"We're going to head inside, Sammy. Are you going to be alright?" She knew he was, but she didn't want to leave him without asking. He let out a dull but positive chime. "Okay. I'm going to lay my jacket over the box so you'll be covered and my cell phone's in the pocket. If something happens, I have Jess' number programmed into my phone. I love you." He gave a more affectionately musical chime and she closed the door.

Charlie braced herself with a deep breath before turning to Mike and Jessica. "Let's go see Clay."

They rung the doorbell and tried to pull themselves together as best as they could. Charlie felt almost naked without her jacket, Mike already had a look like he didn't want to be there, and Jessica was just the third wheel along for the ride, quickly reapplying lip gloss before the door could be answered.

Instead of Clay, it was Carlton. This was unexpected since he was known to sleep in later than this on his off days. He looked just as surprised to see them at their door and confused in the case of Mike.

"Uhh… Hey guys? I didn't know you were coming over," he said unsurely. "What's up?"

"We need to talk to your dad. We know what's been attacking and murdering people around the city and it's not animals," Charlie said cryptically.

"What, you saw something?... Or wait, did something happen?" Carlton looked over the three there and realized how weird it was that Mike was there. "Did something happen to Sammy?" he guessed.

"…We were attacked at Mike's apartment last night. They weren't animals, they were animatronics, and it wasn't Baby."

Carlton's eyes widened slowly as he processed the information. Then Mike casually added in over the girls' shoulders, "Which is sort of an understatement. Technically they attacked us outside the apartment too."

"Where's Clay?" Jessica asked more bluntly. This finally snapped Carlton out of his stupor enough to usher them into the house. He led them back to Clay's office, not the one in the basement but the main one on the first floor. They found him at his desk typing at his computer.

"So… Dad, we've got company," Carlton said. Clay looked up from the screen and saw as Charlie and Jessica walked in and smiled. It became a much more confused look when Mike came in after him. Charlie didn't even give him time to ask and instead delved right into an explanation.

"Clay, we need to talk. I'm sorry to suddenly drop in without calling, but something happened last night and I know you're the only one who can help us. Or believe us, I know it's going to be unbelievable, but you just have to listen and keep an open mind..." she realized she was rambling and fumbling her words and stopped momentarily to regroup. Then said simply, "It's going to sound crazy but you have to trust me on this. Last night I was over at Mike's apartment and animatronics broke in and tried to kill us."

" _What_?" Clay asked startled.

"That's Mike S _chmidt_ by the way," Mike chimed in as he leaned against the doorframe. Jessica sent him an unamused look at his interruption but everyone else ignored it.

"They were animatronics. Animatronics that looked like Freddy and Bonnie, but- but twisted into something horrible. Like they were mashed together with traps. The Freddy was made like a bear trap with detachable hands and buried underground where it would keep its mouth open and try to catch someone- it sounds unbelievable, I know. I wouldn't have believed it if I didn't see it," Charlie explained. "And then we were attacked in the parking lot of the laundromat by Bonnie. I got pictures of it but I have to get them developed."

"Wait a minute, slow down here. Are you saying…? You're saying that these are what murdered those women? These… Animatronic bear traps?" Clay asked. He seemed to be having trouble grasping it, but after Charlie nodded, he almost got a distant look. Like he was lost in thought.

"If you don't believe her then you can drive over to my apartment. They broke down the back door, broke out my window, dug up my yard, and repainted by car with black sludge that I'm going to have to use harsh chemicals to get off," Mike said, coming to Charlie's defense. "And you know that I've worked with animatronics. I know what I'm looking at when I see a Freddy."

"No, I believe you… I have been suspecting for a while that there was more to these murders, but there's been little evidence to go on. It's difficult to back up an intelligent killing when the bodies show scratch marks and bite wounds… You said something about sludge?" Clay asked and looked to Mike, who nodded.

"Bonnie shot the stuff straight out of his arm. I kid you not," he said.

Clay got a grim expression and contemplated this for a moment. Then he looked at Charlie for a long time, then stood from his desk. "Come to the basement. I need to show you something."

Charlie wasn't sure why, but something about that last exchange made her nervous. She still nodded and followed him out of the room, with Jessica, Carlton, and Mike following behind them. Clay led them downstairs, him and her being a little ways ahead of the others. Enough space for him to discreetly ask, "What were you doing at Mike Schmidt's apartment?"

He had a suspicious look. Not the kind of a detective scouring for clues, but of a father figure who didn't trust Mike much. Apparently that feeling was mutual.

"We're friends," Charlie defended. Clay seemed a little doubtful. "He's been helping me with a robotics project I have at the university… A project that was probably destroyed when the house was ransacked."

Clay seemed to believe her and just responded with a hum. Then he flicked on the basement lights and led her over to the desk he kept downstairs. She noticed a map on the wall beside it with three small, red tags stuck to it. Since one of these seemed to mark the park, she could only assume that these were labelling where the murders took place. She was somewhat relieved to see that there were still only three.

While she studied the map and Clay went through papers on his desk, Carlton beckoned Mike and Jessica beside the stairs and pointed into the back corner where Lefty still laid in pieces. Jessica got an uneasy look at seeing it, having remembered dumping it in the desert and hoping to never see it again.

"That's the only Freddy we have on record," Carlton said. He then turned to Mike a feigned a sympathetic look, "It must be hard seeing your former co-worker broken up like this." He got a slight smile.

"Yeah, it's tearing me apart inside," Mike flatly replied. Though he stepped closer to look at what had once been the animatronic bear. "It's hard to believe Sammy came out of that."

Charlie and Jessica both froze and hoped that Clay didn't catch the quiet slip up. Except this was Clay Burke, seasoned detective and clearly suspicious of the man in question, so he did.

"I'm sorry?" Clay asked.

"It's hard to believe something came out of that," Mike said coolly. He looked back at the man with no expression while pointing a thumb at Lefty's remains. "That's what it looks like, that the endo climbed out."

"And that happened frequently?" the detective asked with mild disbelief.

"Considering that random endoskeletons walking around was a thing at Freddy's, I'd say so." While he sent Mike a suspicious look- as though he didn't know if he was joking or serious- Clay turned away and returned to the task at hand. Mike was let off the hook and everyone seemed to breathe a collective sigh of relief, but only for a moment.

"Charlie, I need to show you something that may disturb you," Clay said. "Normally I wouldn't want to bring you into an investigation like this, but considering the circumstances… I don't have much of a choice." He handed over a paper to her. "This is Bridgette Mathews. She is believed to be the first victim."

She took the paper and looked over it. There was a printed picture of the woman- thankfully, a driver's license photo instead of one from the crime scene. She looked to be in her twenties with shoulder length brown hair and brown eyes. Underneath it was a list of information about her, including her address, blood type, and a confirmation that she was twenty-four years old.

"Tracy Horton was found the same morning. We believe they were killed within hours of each other. She was last seen leaving JR's at around one in the morning and it's unclear what led to her attack," Clay explained. He explained as he handed over a second paper. Charlie accepted it and passed the first one back to Jessica where she could look at it, Mike and Carlton looking over her shoulders.

The woman in the photo had a bright smile, brown hair that hung past her shoulders, and brown eyes. She looked younger than the girl from before and a quick look at the information showed that she was, in fact, only nineteen years old. A different address, a different blood type, a different girl entirely, but she suffered the same fate.

"Finally, we have Laura Parsons. She was found in a field beside a gas station. A synthetic mixture that resembled tar was found at the scene which matches the description you've given about Bonnie."

The last paper showed a young woman of only twenty-two with a heart shaped face, large brown eyes, and brown hair that hung down over her shoulders. By then Charlie had noticed the trend.

"They all look like me," she said, dread creeping up into her chest. "I mean, not exactly like me, but the details- they're still there. Brown eyes, brown hair, about the same age…" She looked up at Clay and he nodded.

"Up until now I believed that we were dealing with a serial killer who was disguising their crimes as animal attacks to cover their tracks. The wounds were clean enough to be done by a weapon and it wouldn't be the first time we've seen someone dismember a body... But now that you were attacked by an animatronic, and you are _sure_ it is an animatronic-." Charlie gave an insistent nod. "…Then I don't think it is a coincidence that all of these women look like you."

"Wait… Are you saying you think they're after Charlie?" Jessica asked.

"I believe so. If solely because your history with Freddy's itself is so strong. This can't just be a fluke," Clay explained. Charlie was thoroughly disturbed and looked down at the paper, lost in her thoughts. It sounded so absurd and yet it made sense to her. It was the only thing that could explain why they had pursued her so relentlessly and why they staked out the apartment once they found her.

"Let's really stop and think about this for a second," Mike said in disbelief. "You're saying that someone purposefully built these giant, weapon-filled animatronics to hunt a _single woman_. Those things were clearly built to hunt people, but whose to say they aren't just hunting women in general? Sure, those girls look like Charlie, but brown eyes and hair aren't exactly uncommon in this town, and it's women around her age who are going to be out later. You're just guessing that they're after Charlie because she's connected to Freddy's."

"We can't ignore the connections, not when there's this many," Clay said. A suspicious glint took his gaze. "I find it strange that you're so opposed to the idea when you yourself witnessed these bots."

"I'm not saying I'm opposed to the idea; I'm just saying that us jumping to conclusions isn't going to help anything," Mike said, barely resisting the urge to roll his eyes. "And I already know what you're getting at."

"I think Clay has a point," Charlie chimed up. Largely to stop any budding argument, which thankfully seemed to work. "But so does Mike. Those bots couldn't have been built just to hunt me alone. They don't even look like they were built recently. Mike, you saw them; they looked old, their fabric was torn and faded. They look like something that was built ages ago and only just activated and got out." She looked back to Clay with certainty in her eyes. "I know they must've come from Afton Robotics."

"Considering the things we've seen down there, it wouldn't surprise me," Clay agreed.

"And you guys were just down there. Maybe you could've accidentally let them out while searching for Baby!" Jessica added in.

"But that doesn't explain what sent them after Charlie. If they have been down there and just got out, how would they even know about her?" Mike pointed out. "These things don't act like they're haunted. The haunted ones are smarter, have their own little patterns and quirks. These act like they're programmed."

"Which could be the case, and as I see it there's two possible options for who would've had the means," Clay explained. "The first option and the less likely is that it isCircus Baby. Being an automaton herself she may be capable of controlling other machines, but I find it very unlikely that she alone would be capable of this. The other option is that it is William Afton. To bring everyone up to speed, William Afton was a genius when it came to both building elaborate animatronics and hiding his tracks, and as of now his whereabouts are still unknown."

At first Charlie mentally protested this idea, as William Afton had died in the fire, but then a new thought sunk in. _"If Sammy was right and William was an animatronic, then maybe he survived the fire. Sammy and Baby did, why not him?"_ she wondered. These were worries she couldn't voice to the others.

"But figuring out who is behind this is my problem, not any of yours. Right now, our top priorities are to secure Charlie's safety and to put out a bulletin warning Hurricane about these continued attacks. We'll keep with the violent animal story as to not draw unnecessary panic, and I'll look into a formal evacuation order if it comes to it," Clay said as he took charge. He turned his attention back to the brunette in question. "Since they found you last night, I think it would be safest if you stayed here tonight in our guest room."

"I don't know. I don't want to put you in danger," Charlie said. Really, she was thinking about Sammy. Until another fleeting thought said, _"But if I stay with Sammy, I'll be putting him in danger."_ She remembered how eagerly he fought Bear Trap Freddy. If he would've done that same thing with Glue Trap Bonnie, he could've been ruined by the sludge. She couldn't imagine how it could've damaged his fragile electronics.

And if it was William Afton who was behind this, having somehow survived her father's trap, then she would be leading him right back to her brother. He could take him again.

"You wouldn't be putting us in danger. I'm more than comfortably armed and can have patrol cars stationed outside the house. Considering these circumstances, I'm more than justified in doing so if it means protecting you," Clay said. He then turned to Mike. "The offer is the same for you, Mike. We can't be certain that the animatronics haven't identified you as a target now that they've seen you with her."

"Thanks, but I've got it under control. I'll just stay at a motel or something. One way far on the other side of town until I straighten out my apartment," Mike declined. A motel on the edge of town sounded miles safer for Sammy- the further from her, the safer he would be, though Charlie knew he wouldn't like it. Jessica noticed her distress and came to her side.

"If you don't feel safe staying in town then we could maybe try the dorms again. It might be out of Clay's jurisdiction, but I'm sure he could convince the St. George police to station extra security there," she said. Charlie shook her head.

"No, he's right. I would be safer here. Let me just… I need to go out to the car for a second." Jessica knew she was going to see Sammy and nodded, and nobody stopped her in going up the basement steps and heading out of the house. A silence fell over the room the moment that she left.

It was Carlton who eventually broke that silence. Muttering under his breath with a not too subtle, "This is nuts."

While Clay wouldn't have worded it like that, he shared the sentiments. He couldn't help but feel sorry for Charlie and what she was having to go through. It was that that turned his attention back onto Mike.

"Mike," he began, controlling his tone to keep the man from becoming defensive. It didn't work as Mike tensed up instantly. "If you know more than you're letting on then you need to come clean now. Charlie's life could be on the line," Clay said sternly. The younger man's eyes popped open and he spun on him.

"Oh, I knew this was coming. Look, I had nothing to do with this. I'm the one who had my apartment ransacked by those things!" he defended. While both Jessica and Carlton looked uncomfortable, Clay was entirely unmoved, and that only made Mike more frustrated. "This is just like with the fire. You hear my name and you start placing me at the scene."

"I don't need your name to place you at the scene, Mike. You're always there," Clay chided. A glint of surprise passed Mike's face but he stood his ground. "First the vandalization of Freddy Fazbear's Pizza two years ago, then the fire at Freddy Fazbear's Pizza Place, and now here you are in the center of a murder investigation involving what may be Fazbear Entertainment animatronics. Now I am not accusing you of anything, I am simply asking if there is something you are not telling me that may help the investigation."

"Just because I've got a history with Freddy's- Just because I _worked_ at Freddy's- I told you exactly what happened, okay? I didn't "place myself" at the scene. The scene was _my apartment_. In fact-!" Mike was getting so worked up that he was about to snap, but before he could say anything incriminating, he caught himself and took a different route. "You know what? I don't need this. I'm out of here. Consider this my statement to the police."

With that, Mike trudged back up the basement stairs and slammed the door on his way out. Clay pinched the bridge of his nose and took a deep breath. That hadn't gone the way that he intended it too.

Jessica and Carlton just stood there witnessing the scene in silence. It wasn't until it settled down for a few seconds that Jessica decided it was time to go.

"We'll just get out of your hair," she excused, grabbing Carlton by the arm and half-dragging him to the stairs. He didn't even have a clever quip as he sent one last look back at his father before leaving him be, knowing he needed the space.

Outside and oblivious to the argument, Charlie got into the backseat of Jessica's car and sat there alongside the carboard box. Since Sammy hadn't stirred, she assumed he was still asleep. She hated waking him.

"Sammy?" She tapped gently on the top of the box. There was a soft shifting noise and a muffled ring, he was still half asleep. She supposed this was the best time to give the news. "Sammy, we spoke to Clay and he believes us, but… He showed me pictures of the women who were murdered. They look like me. Same hair, same eyes, same general face shape, almost the same age. He thinks that- considering the family history with Freddy's- they might be hunting me."

Charlie expected a reaction but Sammy was silent. She couldn't tell if he had fallen back asleep or was just listening silently. She took a deep breath and continued.

"Clay offered for me to stay here so he could protect me and I think that's what I'm going to do. He's going to bring in more cops to watch the house and if anything shows up then they'll… I don't know if they'll be able to stop them, but they'll see them, and it should give me enough time to get away if I need to. Mike's not going to be staying and I know you're not going to like this, but I think you should go with him."

Still, prolonged silence. It was too silent now; she knew he was listening. Though at least he was hearing her out.

"If Clay's right and I am the one they're following, then staying with me will just put you in danger. It's just safer and easier if you go with Mike tonight. It'll be like I stayed over at Aunt Jen's and I'll come to see you as soon as morning comes. I just- I can't let you... I'm not going to let you get yourself hurt protecting me. Not when there's another way. Let me protect you this time, okay?"

Still silence and Charlie took a deep breath and exhaled in a sigh. "I'm going to go see if Mike and Jess are ready to go. We still have plenty of time before nightfall," she said.

Charlie turned to reopen the car door when the box beside her suddenly burst open. It seemed like the moment her hand landed on the door handle, Sammy's hand landed on her wrist, his long fingers wrapping tightly around it. She looked back to see him half unfurled out of the box, mask marred in fear and desperation. An expression she was sure matched hers very well.

He didn't say anything, but she could read everything from that look alone. _"Don't do this." "It doesn't have to be this way." "We can do this together." "Don't leave me."_

And she didn't want to. She didn't want to lose her brother, which was why she made this decision. Even if she knew that it would hurt him now, it would keep him safe in the long run.

"I know you're scared, Sammy. I am too. This whole thing is terrifying… But it'll be okay." Charlie gave him a smile. "I'm going to be fine! It's just one night and if all goes well then maybe it'll be the only night."

Sammy lowered his gaze with an almost lost look before giving a hollow sigh of acceptance. Reluctantly he agreed with her plan. Not out of any concern for himself, but because he knew he had little choice in the matter. Charlie had already made up her mind. Maybe she would be safer with Burke, if he was sure that she was the true target-.

Suddenly he remembered his nightmare from a few nights ago. He had thought it had been about Charlie, but instead he had caught the glimpses of the last moments of someone who looked like her. He squeezed her arm as he was hit by guilt and remorse. He couldn't have done much for that woman, but the look on her face would still haunt him.

Seeing his distress, Charlie reached for him and pulled him close like he had to her that morning, trying to offer some comfort. He rested his head in the crook of her arm with his hand still securely on her wrist. They stayed like that for a short while, just existing in a moment of safety.

Just in case...


	8. H-U-N-T-E-D

The drive to Mike’s apartment was uncomfortably quiet. Charlie sat in the back with Sammy and held his hand while the rest of him remained folded into the safety of the box. Mike was in the passenger’s seat stewing to himself and glaring out the window at the passing scenery. This left Jessica to drive and silently take in the atmosphere of clashing emotions across the car.

They pulled up to the apartment to see the full extent of the damage and found a few changes since they left. Such as the broken front window now being covered with cardboard and duct tape. The massive hole left by Bear Trap Freddy hadn’t been filled, which at least assured them that Freddy hadn’t reburied himself in it. Charlie’s car was left untouched where it had been parked.

The three humans got out of the car to get a closer look at the scene. Jessica hissed as she looked at the chunk taken out of the yard. “I bet that’s what that hole at the park looked like before they filled it,” she said. She visibly shivered. “I thought Lamar was just exaggerating or wrong when he said they found a leg. That’s just terrifying to think they can do that.”

“It’s even worse when you see it in person. All it would take is one wrong step and in the dark…” Charlie trailed out cryptically, not wanting to finish that thought. She sighed and continued, “You guys go ahead. I’m going to call John and tell him what’s going on before he hears about it from someone else.” She had put it off long enough. No matter what his reaction was, it would be better than if he heard it second hand.

Jessica gave an encouraging nod and Mike gave a distant, “Sound’s good.” He walked to the front door and, after finding it locked, unlocked it, and let himself into the apartment.

Jessica could read from his motions alone that he probably needed some space. “Actually, I think I might just wait in the car and let you guys do your thing,” she said. Charlie agreed and got out her cellphone to call John as her friend returned to her car. As luck would have it, John answered this time, giving her no chance to avoid this any longer.

“Hey, John. It’s me…”

Meanwhile, Mike walked into his apartment and saw a train wreck. It had been ransacked, but it was clearly not from any thieves or looters, just from one steam engine of a bear charging through. Curtains had fallen, the television was knocked over, and through the kitchen he could see that the backdoor was gone and replaced with flimsy, wood panels. The window beside it retrieving the same cardboard treatment.

A lone paper rested on the ground and Mike picked it up to see that it was a handwritten letter from his landlord.

_Mike,_

_There was a break-in last night. I had the police come by to take a report but if anything’s missing then you’re going to have to call them and add to the report. Here’s the number to the officer who was here. Ordering replacement doors and windows, should be here in about a week._

_-B_

That was it. He didn’t even seem concerned that Mike wasn’t at the apartment when it happened and apparently didn’t report him missing even though he never came home.

“That’s an assuring thought,” Mike muttered tiredly. He crinkled up the note and tossed it onto the couch. He wasn’t calling the police; he had enough of that for today. Instead, he continued to walk around and look at the damage to the house. Something broke in here last night and almost killed him, and nobody even noticed he was gone. He could be dead right now and nobody would’ve cared.

It was feeling more and more like he was back at Freddy’s.

Suddenly Mike made a beeline into the bedroom and to his dresser. Thankfully, the room had been untouched, and he yanked out the bottom drawer and pulled out folded clothes until he reached the stash hiding underneath. There lay a slew of old tasers. All of them were dead, some of them flat-out broken, but he was desperate for anything so he searched through to find the one in the best condition.

These tasers were made specifically by Fazbear Entertainment to subdue animatronics. They were powerful, lightweight, and could take down a mechanical monstrosity in one discharge. The only problem was that getting batteries for them was virtually impossible now that the company went under. After trial and error, Mike had discovered that the newer tasers could be charged with a car battery, but even then, it would only give enough power for a few shocks.

He wasn’t supposed to have these. Normally only technicians would’ve had them and they would’ve been forced to turn them in before they were let go, but by time Mike worked at Freddy’s nobody was there to count the supplies anymore. Most of them had been dead when he took them. Just having one in his hand felt incriminating, though that could’ve been from Burke’s lecture earlier.

Mike gave a weary sigh and picked up one of the tasers to look closer, only to catch a glimpse of black and white out of his peripheral vision.

Sammy was hovering right beside him. He had gotten used to the Puppet silently sidling up on him, but he hadn’t expected him to somehow get himself out of the box, out of the car, and into the apartment without any discernable noise. Which would mean that he had gotten in without Charlie since she wouldn’t have had enough time to move him in.

But the surprise was nothing compared to the uncomfortable situation he found himself in when Mike realized that he was holding a taser meant to control animatronics in front of a sentient _animatronic_.

He could’ve explained what it was used for and why he had so many sitting in his drawer, and why he never said he had them even after he agreed to keep the Puppet there, or really anything that would easily smooth over the situation. Instead, just like when he became defensive with the police chief, words fell out without much thought or tact.

“I never used them. I just kept them in case I needed to,” Mike defended. He was kicking himself the second after he said it. _“Good job sounding sketchy as all hell, Schmidt. No wonder Burke thinks you’re an Afton.”_

But much to his surprise, Sammy just reached out his hand like he was asking for the taser. Mike raised a brow and handed it over. The Puppet turned it over in his hands carefully, studying it like a human might look over a knife they were afraid to get cut by. Mike couldn’t tell if he hadn’t seen one before or if he had and was trying to get some other information from it. It was hard to tell; though the gentle way it touched it and the slight shift in its eyes seemed to suggest a familiarity.

It almost looked fascinated by what was just a piece of machinery. It was then that Mike caught himself staring and averted his gaze.

“I don’t know if they’ll work on those things, but I thought it’s worth a shot. Better than nothing… I prefer a false sense of security than harsh reality. I’ve had enough of that,” he said. Sammy chimed in either agreement or understanding, and Mike tapped his fingers on his knee thoughtfully. “Charlie’s studying robotics. What do you think, could she get these working?”

Sammy hummed thoughtfully and started to shrug, but then caught himself- this was Charlie they were talking about. He had seen the skill she had when it came to robotics and repairs. He gave a much more confident nod and a positive chirp. Besides, it would be good for her to have something like this on her.

“Then I’ll leave it to her. Now come down here and help me figure out which of these she’s going to need.”

Sammy eagerly accepted the invitation and knelt on the carpet alongside him. He waited patiently as Mike searched around inside the drawer and eventually started handing over tasers and parts that he thought looked like they were in good condition. Sammy would then study and feel them until he deemed them useful. Good ones were stacked between them, bad ones dropped into the corner of the drawer.

It was a nice distraction. It almost felt like a game if the Puppet pretended it was. Anything to get his mind on better things. Thankfully, Mike was just interesting enough to keep his focus for a little while.

Meanwhile, Charlie had just walked into the apartment and was staring at the sheer damage left in last night’s wake. All while half-listening to John still on the phone, voicing his concerns. She started to drift further into the memories of the night before as she realized how lucky they had gotten. If it had been Bonnie blocking the front door then things could’ve ended differently.

It was John saying her name that snapped her out of it. “I’m here. Sorry, I was just… Looking at the apartment. It’s sort of a mess,” Charlie said. “But don’t beat yourself up about it. I’m glad you didn’t answer, because we really needed to get out of the city and I don’t know how comfortable it would’ve been trying to squeeze you into Jessica’s room,” she said, trying to lighten the mood. Her smile faded as she entered the kitchen.

The table had been shoved aside and her toolbox had been knocked to the floor with its contents scattered. Ella had thankfully not been knocked off or else her porcelain shell would’ve probably been irreparably damaged. It didn’t change the sheer scope of the damage though; whatever that second bear was breaking both the window and through a door. It had to have been huge, but she hadn’t gotten a good look.

“I know, but I should’ve been there for you. Hell, I’d sleep in a gas station bathroom if it meant keeping you safe… Clay has more than one guest room, doesn’t he? Maybe I should stay over with you.”

Charlie eyes widened in horror as his suggestion that he spend the night near her, a walking target, lined up with sight of the destroyed kitchen.

“No, don’t do that _,_ ” she said a little too quickly. She caught herself fast enough to work in an excuse. “There’s no reason for you too. Clay’s going to be there with other officers and they’re going to keep everything out. I don’t want you putting yourself in-… Putting yourself in the middle of this when we have everything under control. You’ll just keep yourself up over nothing.”

“Charlie, I know it’s not nothing. I can hear it in your voice,” John affirmed with concern. “I’m not saying I’m going to run out and beat Freddy with a baseball bat, but I could at least try to give you a little peace of mind. It’s not much, but it’s the one thing I know you need. You shouldn’t go through this alone.”

“I… I would feel better if I didn’t have to worry about anyone else. Now that I know these things are coming after me, I can deal with them. I just… I need to know that nobody else is going to get hurt because of me,” Charlie said. Just saying all of that made her feel too vulnerable. “I’m sorry to cut this short but I need to get my stuff packed up and out to the car. I’ll call you back later, I promise.”

“…Alright, Charlie. If that’s what you want,” John agreed with a tired exhale. “But just think about it.”

“I will.” But Charlie had already made up her mind. As soon as the call was ended, she crouched down and began to put the tools up. She was only halfway through when Mike came out to find her.

“Hey, you got a minute?” he asked. He was carrying two tasers and a battery, handing over one of them with the battery. “So, these are tasers that were made to “pacify” animatronics back at Freddy’s,” he said with air quotes. “Now they’re old and dead, but I thought maybe you could look at one and see if you could get it working. This one I’m going to hook up to the car battery because that’s how I got it working last time. Barely, but working.”

Charlie recognized the taser immediately. It looked almost exactly like the one she had found in Afton Robotics, before it had become spare parts around the workshop when she took it apart trying to study it. Now she was regretting that decision, but at the time it too was out of charge and she was looking to see if there was a way to replace the battery. Then it had just fallen by the wayside.

It was different now. She had studied more advanced robotics lessons since then, got a little hands-on work done, and had a reason to get the tool working. With the drive and the knowledge, Charlie was determined to get it working again. “Thanks. I’ll see what I can do,” she said, hiding her budding confidence. “But no promises.”

“With these things? I can’t even guarantee it won’t burst into flames the second your crack it open,” Mike said with a light scoff. Then he looked past her at the damage to the back door and window. “What a mess.”

“At least it looks sealed off. I don’t think you’ll have a problem with someone trying to get in,” Charlie offered. She regretted the comment immediately, not wanting to give him ideas about staying when all that existed of a back door was a thing piece of plank. “But you’re still planning on going to a motel?”

“Yeah, I just can’t trust the place until something happens with Freddy,” Mike admitted.

Relieved, Charlie nodded in understanding. “Same. At least it shouldn’t be much longer.”

“Don’t be shocked if those things don’t show up, and don’t get a false sense of security either. I think there’s a good chance that they’re not going to show up in a crowded place. That’s probably why they’ve avoided being spotted. Who knows, there might be some sort of elaborate program to recognize cops and split.”

“Do you think they’d be that advanced?”

“Honestly? No, but some of the old Freddy bots used to have facial recognition, so it’s not totally out there.”

Unsurprisingly, this did nothing to ease her fears. If anything, the prospect of facial recognition fit too well when considering that these bots were recognizing women based off similar features. She continued thinking about it through packing up Ella and her tools and felt no better by time they left the apartment.

Hours later the thoughts returned too. The mental speculation on how these animatronic beasts worked in the concept of functional robots instead of wild animal. There was no instinctual drive, there wasn’t a brain capable of learning abstract concepts beyond basic patterns and similarities, and little willpower of its own. They seemed capable of self-preservation in the sense that they knew to hide themselves in the daylight, but that could’ve been as simple as light sensors or a built-in timer.

Not to mention how someone was able to build these monstrosities without anyone finding out. Charlie knew William was capable of evil acts and covered them well, but this seemed beyond what one man could do. Though thinking back to Afton Robotics, he at least had the means to build them. Maybe even a place to hide them for years. It made Charlie feel sick.

She took a deep breath and tried to focus on the task at hand. Currently she sat cross legged on the bed in Mike’s motel room, studying the inside of the taser and writing notes on what she found inside, and brainstorming ideas to get it recharged. It wasn’t ideal conditions for working, but she wanted to stay with Sammy until Mike got back from work and decided to start on the taser early.

Sammy was kneeling on the bed alongside her. He had Theodore sat in his lap with an arm wrapped around the doll to keep it pulled close to his slender middle. He held the bunny doll with a gentleness one might use with a child. In contrast, his other hand was rapidly squeezing a stress ball that Mike had found at the apartment and given him. The rest of his body was so still and gave the illusion of total calmness, but the sharp compressions gave away how wound up he really was.

She felt the same way. Even since sunset she hadn’t been able to shake the feeling of impending doom, but she had still put off going to Clay’s. Instead choosing to wait it out in this motel room with her brother and hope that Mike made it back before anything else did.

The motel room wasn’t much to look at. There was a simple double bed with a comforter styled to look like a patchwork quilt, a small TV that Sammy was currently watching, two chairs and a small table by the window, a door to the bathroom, and a locked door leading into the next room. The room was at the very end of the motel and away from any other rented rooms, as to keep the risk of someone hearing or seeing Sammy at a minimum.

She knew she would’ve had an easier time working at the table, but she didn’t want to sit that close to the window, and she didn’t feel like rearranging furniture. It just felt better to sit alongside Sammy on the bed. Even if they were just sitting alongside each other, no longer trying to distract themselves with mindless games of Tic-tac-toe and Hangman.

She was drawn out of her blank staring at her notebook- trying to remember what she was supposed to be writing down next before she got lost in thought- when she heard a car pulling up outside. Sammy must’ve heard it too as his head snapped over to stare at the door. Charlie set everything aside and got up to answer the door, reassured now that Mike had gotten back.

Except when she peeked out the window, she realized it wasn’t him but Jessica, who noticed she had been spotted and waved back. Charlie unlocked the door and opened it for her.

“Hey! Ready to get going?” Jessica asked. She feigned a lighthearted tone, as though she was whisking her friend off to a night on the town instead of a night hiding in the police chief’s guest room. Charlie grimaced and looked back into the room at Sammy. Jessica’s already tentative smile dropped. “Oh no. What’s that look mean?”

“I was really hoping you were Mike. He still hasn’t gotten back from work yet… Hold on a second.” Charlie shut the door slightly and addressed her brother. “I’m going to let Jess in,” she warned. He nodded in understanding and she opened the door, ushered Jessica in, and shut and locked it securely behind her. “Mike’s not back yet,” she started again, only to stop when she turned around to an unexpected scene.

Charlie had warned Sammy so that he would have enough time to go into the bathroom or cover himself before Jessica came in, but much to her surprise he had done neither. He was still on the bed where she had left him, with the only change being that his gaze was back on the television and he had stopped squeezing the ball, now letting that arm drop to his side. He was rigid, holding Theodore tight to his middle.

Jessica was equally surprised and outright staring at the Puppet. Knowing this was exactly what was making him uncomfortable, Charlie began where she left off and got Jessica’s focus back on her instead.

“I don’t want to leave Sammy alone. Let’s just wait here until Mike gets back,” she suggested. She knew Jessica was going to protest, she saw it in her face, and was quick to defend. “Last night they weren’t active until after midnight and it’s only just turned eleven. We should have a little more time.”

“But who says that’s a rule? They could’ve just been waiting for a quiet time to strike when they had a clear opening,” Jessica suggested.

“That’s… True, I’ll admit, but both Mike and Sammy have said that Fazbear animatronics used to become active after midnight. Since these are clearly some version of Freddy’s gang, there’s a good chance they follow the same rules,” she explained. While Jessica looked to believe her, she didn’t look ready to agree, so Charlie compromised. “Just ten minutes. If he’s not back by then, we’ll head to Clay’s.”

The blond sighed and nodded in agreement. Charlie walked back to the bed to start putting away the taser into her bag so she could look at it again later. As she watched her walk by, Jessica noted Sammy staring at her, but when she made eye contact the Puppet swiftly looked back towards the television. It was so quick that she could’ve believed she imagined it but knew she hadn’t.

“I’m going to leave this notebook with you in case you and Mike decide to get in a heated debate,” Charlie attempted to joke. She tore out her recent taser notes, folded them up, and slid them into her jeans pocket.   
Sammy gave a stiff nod and her face softened, and she reached out to pat his shoulder. She had planned on telling him directly not to sneak and follow her, but now it didn’t seem necessary.

A second car pulling up this soon was entirely unexpected. Jessica looked out the window and jumped straight into action. “Okay, Mike’s here. Time to go,” she announced and walked over briskly, grabbed up Charlie’s bag, hooked an arm around hers, and began to almost drag her to the door. Almost like she was currently outrunning the bears. Charlie barely got in a one-armed hug with Sammy before being pulled away.

Mike came in and had to quickly step aside as Jessica pulled Charlie by. The blond flashed him an apologetic smile. “Sorry, but we’ve got to go,” she said.

“You know what they say: “You can check out any time, but you can never leave”,” Mike said nonchalantly. Watching them leave without much change in expression and locking the door behind him. He looked tired, but it was a different kind of tired than the typical ‘chasing trespassers through an abandoned mall’ kind. “Sorry I’m late. I got caught up.”

Sammy gave a chime of assurance and kept his head tilted away while he tried to cover the worry on his face. Mike sat down on the foot of the bed beside him and kicked off his shoes. He exhaled tiredly, looked to the Puppet- and briefly acknowledged the rabbit on his lap, and then turned his gaze to the television. His attention was clearly on something else.

“First of all, the guy who takes the graveyard shift gets there late. He’s usually about five or ten minutes off, but this is over thirty minutes. This is long enough I should be getting paid overtime. So, when he finally shows up, I ask him ‘what gives? Where’ve you been?’ in my typical ‘I could really care less’ sort of way…” Mike sighed again. “And he bursts into tears.”

Now that caught Sammy’s attention. He looked to Mike with curiosity as the man continued. “Turns out that he got in a fight with his girlfriend of three years and they had broken up, that’s why he was late. Now I’m standing there feeling like a jark, he’s crying his eyes out, and the next thing I know I’m sitting there listening to his life’s story, telling him it’s going to get better, that he’s going to meet someone else. Eventually he pulls himself together and I finally get out of there.”

Sammy got a touch of a sympathetic smile and reached back for the notebook. He was just about to write down a message commending Mike for his patience when the man continued.

“And then I’m driving back thinking I dodged a bullet when it suddenly dawns on me how empty my life is.”

The pen stopped instantly.

“This guy had a girlfriend for years who he cared about enough that he was bawling over losing her. He’s got a brother and a family who cares about him. He owns his own house and he only works the night shift because he takes classes during the day. He’s a student and he _owns his own house_. I don’t have any of that. I’ve never dated anyone for more than a few dates, folks are gone, no house, no career, no degree. My life is literally going night shift to night shift and barely keeping my head above water,” Mike vented. His voice fell significantly. “It’s pathetic.”

The Puppet stared silently and Mike huffed before pinching the bridge of his nose. “I’m sorry. You’ve got enough to worry about with all this going on. I’m just blowing off some steam here.”

But Sammy wasn’t satisfied with that answer. The pen hit the paper and began to write with the same velocity as when he had been squeezing the stress ball, which was now forgotten beside him. The moment Mike noticed and started to glance over the notebook was thrust into his hands. He read the line left for him.

_“Just because you don’t have the perfect life doesn’t mean you don’t have a good life. Personally, I think you’re wonderful.”_

The corner of Mike’s mouth quirked with a smile. “Yeah, well… Thanks.” No quips, no snark, and he handed the notebook back. “Wonderful might be stretching it.”

Apparently, Sammy wasn’t content with this as he immediately went back to writing. It took longer before he handed the notebook over again.

_“But you are. You have done so much for us and you haven’t asked for anything in return. You’re letting me stay with you even after last night. You should be afraid of me, yet here you are talking to me like I’m a real person. Nobody’s done that other than Charlie. That is wonderful of you.”_

This was the first time they really acknowledged the elephant in the room. There was comments here and there, and occasionally talk about Freddy’s, but Mike tried his hardest to avoid directly addressing what Sammy was. He toed that line but never felt safe enough to cross over. Now he was given an opening and he decided to take the plunge.

“I could say the same thing. I wouldn’t think you’d trust someone who worked at Freddy’s after everything that went down there. Charlie said you were the one who told her to ask me,” Mike said. He looked to Sammy in questioning and received a nod. “Why me? Was it just because I was the one you saw the most?”

Sammy shook his head and wrote down another message. This one was shorter and more direct.

_“You looked trustworthy.”_

Mike audibly scoffed at this as he handed the notebook back. “Try telling that to Burke… Heh, guess things might’ve ended differently if you saw me walking around in this,” he joked, tugging at the shoulder of his security guard uniform. “Last I remembered, night guards and animatronics didn’t exactly do well in the same room.” He was joking, of course, but he was also fishing for answers. He wanted to know more.

The Puppet began to write something down when he suddenly stopped short. His briefly turned his head to glance at Mike again, seemingly contemplating something, and then began to write a lot slower. Mike quirked a brow but stayed silent, wondering if he had gone too far. This time Sammy almost hesitantly handed over the notebook and the man looked down to read-

“ _That uniform looks good on you. It really brings out the silver hue in your eyes.”_

That was the last thing he expected to read tonight. Any direction he thought the conversation was going in flew straight out the window.

 _“Where did **this** come from? Is he just trying to change the subject or is this some kind of-?” _Mike sneaked a look at the Puppet. In contrast to his usual direct and unabashed staring, he was now looking towards the carpet much more timidly, twirling the pen in his fingers. That cleared it up right away. _“…Okay, starting to see that wonderful comment in a whole new light.”_

He had to be taking this the wrong way. This was just an innocent compliment that he twisted up because it seemed a little too intimate. Sammy was just being direct. From what conversations they had through the notebook messages, that seemed to be the case. Mike just needed to ignore the implications he imagined and just thank the Puppet for his compliment. Maybe ask about the night shift and see where it went.

Unfortunately, this was Mike Schmidt, the man who decided to repeatedly test his luck, and the man who had been toyed with numerous times by said Puppet.

“I guess I’ll take your word for it…” Mike said. A slow smirk stretched across his face as he looked over out of the corner of his eye. “I was wondering why you were always staring. Turns out you just can’t keep your eyes off of me.” Sammy reacted with a startled ring and an expression to match it, dropping his pen. “Don’t get me wrong, I am flattered. I just never expected you to be carrying such a torch.”

Now Sammy turned to him with a flair of static and a frustrated frown. Mike returned with a flash of a smile. The Puppet turned away, still dialing with irritation and embarrassment. Mike playfully rolled his eyes.

“Alright, alright, I’m sorry. I’m just having a little fun with you. I’m not used to getting compliments without a catch,” he apologized, still thoroughly amused. The static died down but he could tell Sammy was still peeved. Trying to salvage the mood, he reached behind them for the remote. “Mind if I look around?”

Sammy shook his head and Mike began to flip through the channels. It was a few minutes of quiet tension before Mike started to wonder if he had really offended the Puppet. It wasn’t until the animatronic scribbled down another note and passed it over that he found out the real reason for his silence.

_“I’m worried about Charlie. I should be with her. I can’t protect her from here.”_

“Stripes, you know she’s where she needs to be,” Mike said sympathetically. “We held our own last night but we could’ve lost our handle on the situation easily. At least now she’s being guarded by a bunch of armed police officers who are authorized to use a lot more force than either of us are. She’s probably asleep-… Okay, she’s probably wide awake right now, but she’s safe and secure. That’s good enough.”

The Puppet nodded stiffly and set down the pen so he could pull the rabbit plush into a protective hug. Holding and shielding it as he wanted to but couldn’t do to her. It smelled like the same fabric refresher spray that she used on the couch; it smelled like home.

Mike decided to ignore everything that happened earlier and slid in closer to put an arm around the Puppet. He shuddered at his touch; his nerves probably frayed from the whole ordeal.

“Think about it like this: you’re watching out for me tonight. Making sure I don’t get into any more trouble, or that I don’t split with Charlie’s car in the middle of the night,” Mike offered with another reassuring smile. “Trust me, once it hits midnight those hours are going to fly by like _that_.” He snapped his fingers. “Now come on. Help me find something half-decent to watch.”

Another nod and Sammy finally lifted his head to look at the screen again. He shifted closer into the comforting hold and tried to wind down a little. It was just one night, and it wasn’t even midnight yet.

Charlie’s feelings mirrored Sammy’s with only slight differences. She didn’t want to leave him like this and felt an emptiness with him gone, but she knew it was for the best. She was silent the drive back to Clay’s.

She found herself staring at the shadows of distant hedges and trees as she got out of Jessica’s car. The air felt colder than it had only minutes earlier, spreading goosebumps up her covered arms. She could feel their dead eyes staring out from the bushes without knowing if they were there or not. They couldn’t be there, she knew that, and yet she half-believed they were. She hurried to get into the house.

What awaited her inside was something entirely unexpected. Charlie led the way into Clay’s den only to be taken aback to see John, Lamar, and Marla sitting on the couches. Carlton was to be expected, but nobody had said anything about the others dropping in. Especially since she had assured John that he didn’t need to.

“Guys? What are you doing here?” Charlie asked. She had her suspicions that she already knew.

“Surprise! We’re joining the stake-out!” Marla exclaimed with a cheesy smile. A smile no doubt used to cover any shred of doubt or unease. Charlie smiled a little.

“I-I appreciate the sentiment, guys, but you don’t have to do this. I don’t think Clay’s going to go along with this,” she said. Of course, he wouldn’t. Three more people- four if counting Jessica- risking their lives, getting in the middle of a police investigation, including his own son; there was no way Clay could agree.

“We already talked to him and straightened it out,” John said while standing from the couch and coming to meet her in the entryway.

“How did you manage that?” she asked in disbelief. That sinking feeling was returning and every word felt like quicksand.

“I just told him that the only way he was going to make me leave is in the back of a police car. Didn’t put up much of a fight after that,” John said. His mouth quirked in an amused smile, but it faded fast when he noticed the slowly growing distress on his girlfriend’s face. He took her hand in his and held it tight. “Charlie, what is it?” he asked. “You’ve got to tell me what’s on your mind. I can’t help if you don’t.”

“I don’t want you guys to do this,” Charlie admitted. She turned to the others with trepidation and remorse clear on her face. “I don’t want you to get in the middle of this too. I already got Mike involved and now his apartment’s been destroyed, Sammy’s had to go through all of this, and I just… I… I don’t want more people having to go through this because they’re trying to help me. I’ll be safe with Clay and the police. Nothing’s going to get to me.”

“If you believe that then why won’t you let us stay with you?” Jessica quietly challenged. Charlie’s mouth shut as she ran out of viable protests. The blond laid a gentle hand on her arm. “We’re here because we’re worried about you. We’re not going to be able to sleep knowing you’re going through this alone, so just let us do this. We know what we’re getting into.”

“But you don’t. This isn’t like before. These things are nothing like Baby. They’re literal monsters built to kill people! They could kill any of us if we got too close, and they’re coming directly for me,” Charlie warned.

“Then will you please let us help you?! We want to be here for you! We’re not just going to hide at home and let you face them alone!” Marla exclaimed. She took Charlie by the shoulders and stared up into her eyes with fierce determination. She huffed, regaining her composure, and clarified her point, “We love you, Charlie. We’re not going to let you take this alone.”

“I don’t want to be the reason one of you gets hurt,” Charlie quietly rebutted. Her voice losing most of its vigor. “It’s hard enough knowing that three woman died just because they looked like me…”

This was followed by a long pause. Even with such assurance in what she was saying, Marla didn’t know how to reply to that. None of them did. It was by sheer luck that Lamar volunteered a response.

“I understand. You don’t want us to be the reason we stay, because then you feel like it’ll be your fault if we get hurt. Okay then, we won’t stay for you,” he said. He paused, then he nodded at the redhead on the other end of the couch. “We’ll stay for Carlton.”

“I’m cool with that,” Carlton agreed.

“Carlton…”

“You know what they say: you don’t have to run faster than the monster. You just have to run faster than your friends.”

“Carlton!”

“But they’re _not getting in here_ ,” he said firmly. “Dad’s not going to let them. He’ll be drawing his gun and calling for backup long before that. So, why not just… Ride this out together? Worked out for us last time.”

Charlie had figured out by now that she wouldn’t be able to talk them out of this. Though by now their words were starting to have an effect on her, promising her an escape from a night of fear and loneliness. She didn’t want to put them in danger, but she still wanted them here. She managed an honest smile. “If you’re all sure about this… Thanks, guys.”

There were a few comforting or relieved smiles, including John’s own. “No problem, Charlie. There’s nowhere else I’d rather be,” he said. He started to lead her to the couch when she stopped.

“But you have to promise me that you’ll trust me. Because if they do start to get in, I’m going to do whatever it takes to keep us all safe, not just me. Even if that means leading them away from the house. I know for a fact that I can outrun them, so if I do you can’t follow me,” Charlie insisted. The others agreed, but John seemed reluctant.

Eventually he gave a defeated nod and a simple, “If you say so.”

With everything seemingly squared away, Charlie finally came with him to sit on the couch. The one they were on had its back to the window but had a couple of feet between the couch and it. It still made her feel a little vulnerable. Sat between Jessica, John, and Marla- Marla sitting on an ottoman she scooted over to the couch- Charlie looked past the other couch and into the dining room, where she could see Clay walk by on his cellphone. She couldn’t hear his conversation but from how he was pacing it was most likely a call out to the station.

“Did you get the taser working?” Jessica asked curiously.

“No, and I didn’t get Mike’s.” Even though she was rushed out the door, she had already made up her mind to leave the working taser with him in case something came for him and Sammy. The still broken one sat in her back beside her feet; she would need to start working soon. “But Clay knows about the tasers, so I’m guessing the police will probably have some on hand,” she added.

“I wonder if a stun gun would work, one of those ones with the darts. That would be their best bet if they don’t want to risk losing an arm,” Lamar remarked. He grabbed up the remote. “Anyone care if I turn the TV back on?”

“Sure but keep it low. We need to keep an ear out,” John agreed, stretching his arm across the back of the couch behind Charlie. Lamar clicked it on and started flipping around.

Jessica slumped on the couch beside Charlie with a mix of worry and fatigue. The latter probably from the disrupted sleep of the night before. She noticed Clay’s pacing as well and turned to Carlton.

“Hey, how’s your mom taking this? I can’t guess this would go over well with all the fighting,” she asked. Marla got a tense grimace and Carlton held the same apathetic look.

“Well, she doesn’t know I’m here, so she hasn’t taken it yet. You’ll know when she does. You should be able to hear it over in St. George,” he remarked. Then he slumped further into the couch cushions. “We’ll live.”

‘We’ll live’ seemed like a good sentiment to hold right now, and as the night crept on past midnight the room settled down. Clay came out to join them, alert and awake, and offered Charlie a place in the guest room. Unwilling to sleep at what was effectively the witching hour, she offered it to Jessica, and after a little longer the blond almost reluctantly went to lie down. Then it was just a matter of waiting.

Little did any of them know, but there was a harsh wake-up call coming very shortly.

But it wasn’t for Charlie.

_The pulsing had returned._

At first Sammy thought he was imagining it since it was so faint, but as the seconds ticked by, he felt it grow. That familiar throbbing deep inside his head that had previously coincided with the arrival of the monsters. Soon it got to the point where he could feel each footstep the thing took as it crept ever closer. Not willing to risk it getting closer, he frantically shook Mike awake.

“I’m up. I’m up!” Mike said before he was fully awake. He slung his body upright and tried to focus through blurry eyes. It didn’t take him more than seeing the Puppet’s panicked look to know exactly what was going on. “…They’re out there?” he asked in alarm. Sammy nodded, and Mike sprung from the bed in a heartbeat.

The hotel room was reasonably brightened by the light of the television and coming from the bathroom, so he didn’t risk turning on the bedside lamp. He just quietly and hastily made his way to the window and peek out through the curtain. The outside light illuminated the area around the car enough that he could see there was nothing there.

“Are you sure they’re out there? I don’t see anything,” Mike said. He turned back to Sammy. “Did you hear them walking around or something?” 

The Puppet fumbled momentarily as he struggled on how to explain it. Forgoing the notebook, he tried to sign by pointing at his head and making squeezing motions with his hands, trying to simulate the pulse.

Mike stared back almost blankly. Then just decided it had to be some sort of haunted animatronic thing and gave a simple, “Sure.” He didn’t get it but the Puppet seemed sure. He looked back out the window.

There wasn’t any sign of anything out there and he couldn’t even hear the footsteps. He assumed by now he would’ve saw some sort of a sign. Which he got as soon as he looked out the other side of the curtain.

There was a familiar bear trap sitting open in front of the door.

Mike hissed a swear and shut the curtain quickly. He got away from the window as fast as possible and back to Sammy’s side, where he spoke in frantic whispers.

“That goddamn bear trap is back out there. Freddy is _out there_ somewhere,” he said, pointing a thumb at the door. Sammy shuddered at the thought. This confirmed his worst fears; they were all out there. Mike continued to vent, “Charlie’s not even here! How the hell did they follow us?!”

It was this question along with the timing of the throbs in his head that made Sammy piece it all together. It was like he had been dropped in a bathtub full of ice water. Every time they appeared, he felt that pulsing. That familiar pounding that reminded him of the bear suit that once held him, but he had always assumed it was some sort of premonition he couldn’t control. He had visions before after all.

Except that was not what was going on. Sammy wasn’t detecting their approach; they were using some sort of locator beacon to find him. They were _tracking_ him.

“What’s going on?” Mike asked upon seeing the floating puppet begin to twitch and clench his hands. By now he was very paranoid that the other was having some sort of psychic intuition. Sammy snatched up the notebook and frantically scribbled down a short reply before holding it up to him.

_“They’re tracking me!”_

The man took in the words and was straight to the point. “We’re screwed.”

The pulsing suddenly got quicker and Sammy shirked back even before the dull sound of heavy footsteps could be heard outside the window. Mike spun around and backed further from the door; arms thrust out as though shielding the Puppet behind him. His eyes widened as he saw the shadow of a large form on the other side of the curtain. Then came the subtle sound of scraping on glass.

“We’ve got to get out of here,” Mike said. Sammy tapped insistently on his shoulder and pointed towards the door leading to the next room. “Yeah, that’s our best bet with that thing blocking the door.”

The scraping was getting louder and soon turned into insistent tapping. Mike knocked boldly on the door and desperately hoped someone had checked in after he left. Alas, this wasn’t the case.

Sammy’s gaze was fixated on the window with a newfound horror now that he was aware that they knew where he was. He backed further as the tapping became more insistent, like the creature on the other side was calling him. He pressed into Mike’s back with a full body shiver and then reached to grab his arm in panic. Mike could feel his fear through his movements and turned to the Puppet.

“New plan. You can teleport, right? I’ve seen you do it,” he said. Sammy nodded, still staring at the window until he was turned by the shoulder to face Mike. “Stay with me. I need you to teleport through the door and unlock it from the other side.” A good plan with one fatal flaw. Sammy shook his head. “What, you can’t?” Mike asked.

Sammy tried to write the issue down, but found his hand shaking too badly to use the pen and notebook. Eventually he threw them both down in his franticness and instead pointed to his eyes and then the door.

“You have to see the door? You have to see what’s _through_ the door, the room?” Mike guessed. The Puppet nodded, but this didn’t detour the man. This was the only chance they had to go on. He dropped down onto his hands and knees and tried to see if he could see under the door. There was a small gap between the door and the carpet, but not enough to see clear underneath.

The action gave Sammy an idea though and he tapped Mike’s shoulder again and when he looked up pointed him towards the mirror outside of the bathroom. They could use a mirror to look underneath.

“Perfect. Okay, we need to find something reflective…” Mike got up and ran to the bedside table where he tore open the drawer. There wasn’t anything inside except a box of tissues and a Bible.

It was then that the creature outside the window ran out of patience. Maybe it had heard movement closer to the door or maybe it was tired of waiting, but it struck the window with something hard and shattered a section of it. The thick glass barely held as it continued smashing its way through.

“Forget it, we’re using that one!” Mike yelled as he ran to the mirror. He had only two things of use on his belt, the half charged taser and a heavy-duty flashlight, and he used the latter to break the glass. He then used a hand towel from the bathroom to pick up one of the shards. He hastily returned to the door and crouched down. “Come on!”

Sammy had grabbed up Theodore and was clutching him tightly as he watched the creature start to come through. If it had been Bear Trap Freddy, he would’ve fought it immediately, but this creature, this other bear, awoke a deep fear inside of him. It was clearly the source of the pounding in his head, the one who was tracking him. He only looked away when Mike called him.

“Here, quick!” Mike instructed as he pressed the glass into the carpet and tried to aim it under the door. He slid it half under, barely keeping his hand steady as he heard the monster breaking in behind them.

Sammy dropped to his knees beside him, peered at the mirror with glowing eye, and watched as it angled more inside until he caught a glimpse of the space just beyond the door. He then tossed Theodore into Mike’s lap and vanished. Within seconds, he could be heard trying to unlock the door from the other side. Mike stood up and looked back in time to see the other bear crawling through the window.

It had razor-sharp teeth and matted, mustard yellow fur. The coloring reminded him uncomfortably of something he once thought he saw at Freddy’s. He pulled the taser out just in case.

Except that was when the door between the rooms swung open. Mike ran through, tossing the doll back to Sammy, and slamming the door shut. He then went to lock it, but instead of finding a dead bolt or turning lock, he just found a basic key lock on the other side. No way to lock or unlock it without a key.

“How did you- Never mind. Tell me later. We’re out of here.” Mike ran across the empty motel room and to the window. He caught the tail end of the massive animatronic crawling through and looked down at the bear trap, following its chain to where it circled around the corner at the edge of the building and knowing Freddy was likely back there. “I think we can make a run for it. On the count of three. One… Two… Three!”

Mike got out Charlie’s car key, unlocked and threw open the door, took one step out, and then threw himself back in and pulled the door closed just in time to dodge the fluid that splattered against it.

“Bonnie’s back!” he hissed. He could hear the liquid sizzling on the wood and Bonnie’s heavy, wobbly footsteps moving closer. “Forget it, we’ve got to run!” Without another word, he barged back out the door.

Glue Trap Bonnie apparently had a recovery time and it was just long enough that Mike was able to sprint to the car. He unlocked the driver’s side and Sammy threw himself in only a moment before Mike did, slamming the door shut behind him and shoving the key in the ignition. He peeled back in reverse just as Bonnie broke into a jaunty gait towards him. Freddy came out around the side of the motel but wasn’t alone.

There was a fourth animatronic accompanying them. Mike could only make out Chica’s deformed head, hollowed out like a bird skull with beady, glowing eyes, over a bell-shaped body. Its front had the fabric peeled back to reveal thick endoskeleton bars, like a papier-matche project gone terribly wrong.

“Look! Look at that! What the hell is that?!” Mike pointed and tried to yell over the frantic puppet music that began the moment Sammy got into the car. He hit the brakes, pulled the car out of reverse, and floored it.

As a parting gift, Glue Trap Bonnie scraped at the driver’s window as he drove by, then gushed the tar over the backseat window behind it. Mike looked in the mirror as he peeled out of the motel and noticed that all three animatronics were moving a lot faster than they had the night before. Still not enough to catch up, but enough that they could’ve trapped the car in. Hissing through his teeth, he fumbled for his phone.

Charlie awoke with a start to her phone ringing. She hadn’t even remembered falling asleep but could feel that she was leaning on someone’s shoulder. She would’ve assumed it was John if she wasn’t leaning the wrong way. Much to her embarrassment, she realized that she had fallen asleep on Clay’s shoulder. She pulled back quickly and muttered an apology, Clay seemed entirely unbothered.

She got her phone out of her pocket and answered it. “Hello?”

“They were right outside the motel room! They just broke through the window- I’m pulling down East First, you got to tell Clay I’m coming! You wouldn’t _believe_ how fast these things are!” It was Mike and his words were all blurring together as he rushed them out quickly and loudly, struggling to even hear himself over the music in the car.

“Mike?! What do you mean, they found you?!” Charlie gasped in surprise. She shot to her feet as her words caught the attention of Clay, John, and Lamar. It even roused Marla and Carlton who were curled on the couch together. “Did they get to you?! Did they hurt- you?!” She barely caught herself, but she could hear Sammy’s music so she knew he was there.

“No, we’re fine! But we’re not going to be for long! I’m coming over there right now, and I’m bringing _him_ so you’re going to have to figure something out fast! I’ve got to go or I’m going into a telephone pole!”

“Okay, just be careful and come straight here,” Charlie finished. She reluctantly ended the call and turned to Clay who was already getting up. She knew he already heard plenty but brought him up to speed. “Mike was ambushed at the hotel. He’s coming here.”

“Good. Did he say anything about which one attacked him?” Clay asked.

“No, he just said… He said ‘they’. That there’s more than one.” He nodded and took out his radio to alert the officers outside to keep an eye out. Charlie turned back to John who ran to her side and lowered her voice. “Sammy’s going to be with him. We’re going to have to hide him.”

“I think we’re going to have trouble doing that in Clay’s house, but we’ll see what we can do,” John agreed. He thought a moment longer before getting an idea. “We’ll hide him in the guest room. It’s the safest bet.”

“I’ll go wake up Jessica,” Marla volunteered. She hopped up from the couch and hurried off, already toting the energy she might’ve had if she was awake the whole time. Lamar watched her go before speaking up.

“I don’t know. Is there a window in there? If these things are breaking out windows then we should probably be avoiding them. What about the basement? We could hole up down there,” Lamar suggested.

“But then we could get ourselves cornered,” John said. He and Lamar continued discussing it, but this was where Charlie stopped paying attention to the conversation and instead kept her gaze out the front window.

She couldn’t understand. If they were after her then how had they found them? Had they recognized her car? Did they see her leaving the motel room and get confused? There had to be some explanation for this.

Her own car peeled into the driveway only a minute later and barely missed Clay’s and the cruiser parked outside. She knew it was him, and apparently, she wasn’t the only one as Clay hustled to the door before she could even consider an excuse to stop him. He unlocked and opened the front door. She watched him look out with a look of fierce determination and then do a jarred double-take.

“What is _that_?” he asked pointedly. Charlie knew exactly what it was.

“Charlie’s science project. I’m not going to be the reason it gets wrecked,” Mike lied on the fly. He practically barged past Clay and stumbled over the carpet before righting himself. Thankfully, he had managed to wrap Sammy up in the throw blanket before he came in, though because he was carrying him in his arms the blanket didn’t do as good of a job covering him. His striped legs dangled out.

“Lord, give me strength,” Clay muttered. He seemed to eye the exposed fabric but made no further comments as he shut and locked the door again.

Charlie was at Mike’s side in seconds and ushered him back to the guest room. “The room’s back here. This way,” she said. While thrilled that they arrived safely, she could see how shaken Mike was. Perhaps even more so than the night before. That alone told her how serious the situation was.

Jessica was sitting up on the bed talking to Marla when Charlie and Mike rushed in. She sprung to her feet questioningly but didn’t ask any questions, just getting handwave signal from Charlie and turning to guide Marla out of the bedroom. The moment they were out the door, Charlie started to peel back the blanket. “They’re gone-.”

She was caught off-guard by Sammy literally springing to life and clasping her in a tight hug. Though it wouldn’t last, as Sammy was already looking for a hiding spot. For him there was no safety in this house- there was no safety in any house now that he knew it was only a matter of time before they followed him. He looked for a convenient place to hide and fixed upon a closet.

The Puppet broke their embrace to take her wrist and lead her to the door. Charlie understood his intentions almost immediately and watched as opened the door and slid inside. Part of her wanted to protest, to tell him that he would be safe, but seeing him desperately look back at her from out of the darkness assured her that his comfort was more important.

“I’m going in,” she said to Mike. He was standing there vigorously combing his fingers through his hair and only stopped long enough to give a silent thumbs up. Charlie then climbed into the closet.

The closet seemed to only be used to hold spare coats as the floor of it was almost entirely cleared except a few old shoe boxes. The longer coats still hung down far enough to reach them, so she pushed them aside to make a little place to sit. She noticed the position Sammy had taken, with his legs folded to his chest and his arms wrapped around them, and it worried her.

“What happened?” she asked as she took his hand. “What did you see?”

But it wasn’t what he had saw, but when he knew. He looked to her with guilt, his glowing eyes being the only thing illuminating the darkness and took her hand in his. Holding open her palm, he traced letters on it.

“ _T-H-E-Y W-E-R-E-N-T F-O-L-L-O-W-I-N-G Y-O-U. T-H-E-Y W-E-R-E F-O-L-L-O-W-I-N-G M-E.”_ This startled Charlie, especially since they had already witnessed evidence of it. They had gone straight to him. Sammy began to trace again and spelled out, _“I-M S-O-R-R-Y.”_

“No,” Charlie blurted out immediately. “No, don’t be. Just-… We’ll figure it out. It’s no different than when they were after me, okay? We’ll just… We’ll find out what’s going on.” But he knew it wasn’t that simple, not now that he knew the mechanics. She pulled him back into a hug, crouched there in that small closet. Bad memories were already trying to creep up as Charlie held him tight.

Part of her half expected a monstrosity to throw open the door and rip Sammy away from her, just like he did last time.


	9. Snared

There were about five minutes of silence where Charlie and Sammy sat together on the floor of the closet. No more words were exchanged, they just rested like that while both of their minds went a mile a minute. Left alone in the room, Mike laid down on the bed, flat on his back, palms pressed into the comforter, and stared up at the ceiling fan. There was no way he was getting back to sleep like this.

There was a knock on the door before long. "It's open," Mike called over. He expected it to be one of Charlie's friends. It was Clay Burke, because of course it would be.

Clay was carrying a field interview notebook and looked over the room before asking, "Where's Charlie?"

Deciding that he was too tired to come up with a believable reason that she was in the closet, Mike just answered with, "I think she's in the bathroom."

"I should go check on her," he could hear Marla chime in from outside the door. He couldn't tell if she knew he was covering and playing along or was being genuine. Though he did know now that Charlie's whole gaggle of friends were congregated outside the door. Not that it changed much.

"That's fine. You're the one I needed to speak with," Clay said. Mike exhaled and sat up with his back against the pillows. "Can you tell me what happened?"

"I was sleeping when I heard scratching on the window. Next thing I know, the same bear that broke down my back door is breaking in. I got out through a door leading into the next room and went out that door. Almost got sprayed by Bonnie, got in the car, and drove out of there," Mike retold. Clay began to write this down. "…Freddy was there too and there was a Chica walking around in the back."

Clay looked up from the notepad. "You didn't mention Chica before. This is the first time you've seen it?"

"Yeah, but I didn't get a good look at her. All I could see was that she was shaped like a diving bell. About the size of one too," Mike answered. He watched as Clay wrote this down before looking over towards the closed and covered window. "I know you're thinking I'm hiding something."

"I didn't say that, Mike. In fact, I believe everything you've said," Clay said. He raised his gaze to the young man with a much more solemn look. "What do you know about Charlie's 'science project'?"

The question took Mike completely off guard. After he got through the door without questions, he had just assumed that was the end of it. He could tell from this look now that Clay recognized the Puppet. Trying to keep his compositor, the security guard shrugged.

"I think she might've found it at her house. She brought it over to my place. Why?"

"Because it's one of the animatronics that was at Freddy Fazbear's Pizza during the Missing Children Incident. I know I don't need to clarify any of this to you. You know why I may be a little wary that it suddenly appears after all these years," Clay said. Mike nodded slowly. "I didn't see under the blanket. It has a white, porcelain mask with a smile?" A slower nod. "Then that's it."

He started to write something down and Mike crossed his arms across his chest, deciding to do some interrogating of his own. "Wait, wait. How do you even know this? If this bot was working back at the old Freddy's, the Freddy's before I worked at Freddy's, two Freddy's ago, then why remember this one?" he asked. To his surprise, Clay lowered the notebook and began to explain.

"During that time attention was given to the animatronics due to reports we were getting of foul odors and unusual aggression. One of the most notable reports was given from a whistleblower employee who claimed that he had seen blood on the Puppet's hands the day after the children went missing. After that we kept a closer eye on it until it was supposedly decommissioned."

Mike gave him a lazily unenthused look. "So, you think the Puppet made the kids 'disappear'. I don't know what you're looking at, but I don't think it's capable of doing that. Probably an employee shifting blame."

"On that we both agree. Considering that the blood had been cleaned up, we were aware that there was a cover-up of evidence, and it wouldn't be the first time that an accident was blamed on an animatronic. I'm sure you've heard of the boy who was shoved headfirst into an animatronic's mouth by his brother, probably the most known example of Freddy's many accidents."

Charlie had been listening from inside the closer with the door cracked only slightly enough to hear, and when she heard that she was struck by familiarity.

" _Does he mean the Bite of 87?"_ she thought. She looked to Sammy and got her answer. Illuminated by the thin beam of light, she could see the look of shock on his face, and how his glowing eyes had been on her until she looked at him, upon which they quickly looked away. She was floored by it. _"So, that's what really happened…"_

"…No, I didn't, but thanks for the mental image. I'm already not sleeping," Mike said, slightly disturbed by the reveal. He shifted on the bed uncomfortably, his security belt digging into his lower back. "But what's that have to do with the puppet if you don't think he did it."

"I think it may have seen what happened. The whole line of animatronics was made with built-in facial recognition and monitoring equipment. It's possible that we could retrieve footage from it even after all these years."

Sammy gave Charlie a look of silent alarm. Charlie shook her head with a reassuring smile, though even it looked a little pained. Mike too knew the implications of how they would 'retrieve' that information and felt a weird protectiveness towards the Puppet. Maybe because he had spent so much time with him. He tried to go on the defense and underplay the suggestion.

So, he gave a sarcastic, "I'm sure it had a great view from the prize corner."

The police chief's silence was enough to signal that he had made a huge mistake. A quick glance back at the conversation quickly reminded that nobody had said anything about the Prize Corner. Clay would know exactly where the Puppet was stationed, but Mike wasn't supposed to. They both stared at each other for a few excruciating seconds.

"I think you already know you slipped up with that one," Clay said flatly, dashing any hope that he hadn't caught it. Mike clasped a hand over his eyes and slowly dragged it down his face. Clay continued, "Do you want to come clean or do you want to keep going and see what else comes out?"

"I'm sleep deprived. I shouldn't be held accountable for what I say," Mike mumbled under his hand. He then began to explain with exasperation heavy in his voice. "I never worked at the old Freddy's but I knew a guy who did. He was a technician and he used to tell me horror stories about some of the stuff he saw on the night shift. Probably trying to get me to quit while I still could. Obviously didn't work."

"Obviously not. Was this technician the whistleblower? You don't need to give names."

"Right, because you'd have it on file," Mike said unamused. "I don't think so. He never said anything about seeing blood on any of the animatronics. He just said they were attacking employees and management wasn't doing anything to stop them or even reporting the accidents like they happened. All he said about the Puppet was that it scared him. That he thought it was watching him."

"If that's the case then why get so close to it? You've seen for yourself that the animatronics can feign deactivation for long periods of time. Weren't you afraid of being alone with it?"

"Not particularly, no. Maybe I little when she first brought him by, but a few days passed and nothing happened. No big deal. Honestly, I was more afraid of this creepy, little doll she brought over. It was like a porcelain doll about the size of a small toddler. I was afraid of that thing getting up and walking around," Mike said without exaggeration. "Same goes with that guy who worked there. He was way more afraid of this little balloon kid that used to steal his batteries."

"If you're sure about that." Clay sounded doubtful and Mike sat up fully, throwing his legs over the side of the bed and speaking with complete seriousness.

"What I'm _sure_ about is that someone else is going to get killed if something doesn't happen with those things roaming around outside. Freddy's, the Puppet- it's nothing compared to whatever those things are. They're literally tearing through buildings nightly. Someone is going to get hurt," he said firmly. He took a slow breath to calm himself down. "And chances are it's going to be me."

"No, it's not going to be you. I know we've had our disagreements in the past, but if you think I'm going to treat you with any less seriousness than I do Charlie, you have another thing coming. You're under my watch now and come hell or high water I don't plan to let any of these creatures get into this house, even if I have to pick them off from the second story windows," Clay reassured him.

His voice was as intense as ever, but there was also something a little more comforting to it. A stern parental sort of feel; something Mike hadn't heard in years. It made him feel painfully out of place.

"Get some rest. It's going to be a long night."

"I'll try," Mike said. Clay turned and left the room, pulling the guest room door shut behind him. No sooner did it creak shut did the closet door creak open and Charlie step in. Mike kept his eyes glued to the carpet.

"Hey," she began quietly.

"Hey," he returned. "Guess you heard that."

"Why didn't you tell me that you knew about him when I first brought him over? You acted like you had never seen him before," she asked.

"Technically I hadn't. All my information I got second hand… I don't know. I already knew your situation when you brought him, so when I saw him, I just rolled with it. Now that I know you and him it felt too late to say anything. I kept telling myself I'd say something eventually and never did," he admitted. He sounded genuinely regretful for keeping the secret; if his slumped posture was any indication.

"I believe you," Charlie said. That didn't mean she was letting him off the hook yet. "What else do you know about him? I know you couldn't tell Clay everything without putting him in danger."

"Not that much. Nothing he can't tell you himself."

"I think it'd be easier for you to explain it than him," Charlie pressed. There was a pause before Mike gave a sigh signaling that he was about to cave.

"I know he used to work in the Prize Corner handing out prizes and taking tickets and stuff like that. In a box- imagine a jack-in-the-box sort of deal. Then they had this music box that they'd play all night to keep him from getting up and wandering around, but it had to be wound pretty much every thirty minutes. That and a basic description was all I knew up until I saw him for myself," he explained.

As expected, it was this supposed music box that caught Charlie's attention. Sammy had never mentioned anything about a music box, especially since he himself seemed to work like one. Though if it kept him in the Prize Corner then that either meant there was some sort of programming quirk or that it calmed Sammy enough to keep him in place. She was leaning towards the first option.

Mike looked back at her only to notice the silent onlooker. There was the Puppet in question looming there in the closet doorway. His expression was troubled, but whether it was because of what Mike or Clayton had said or just from everything that transpired that night was unclear.

"Hey, Stripes," Mike greeted. Sammy responded with an unreadable chime. The man turned away and stared at the door momentarily, then stood from the bed. "I'll be right back."

Charlie's head snapped up. "But you're coming back?" she asked.

"Yeah." He stepped out into the hallway and pulled the door closed behind him. Charlie hoped he meant that.

Now that they were alone, she turned to Sammy whose concerned look matched her own. "Sammy…" Before she could continue past that, there was a knock on the guest room door. Her head snapped over and Sammy swiftly ducked back into the closet. "Who's there?"

"The calvary," Lamar called back. Charlie's mouth twitched with a smile.

"Come on in," she said before thinking. She then looked to Sammy to make sure it was alright with him. He nodded as he slipped into the closet before pulling the door closed to a crack. Charlie looked over at her friends coming in before walking to the closet door and reaching inside, offering Sammy her hand. He took it eagerly.

"I'm guessing you heard all of that," Charlie said. She received a few nods of agreement.

"Pretty much," Jessica admitted with a guilty smile.

"Kind of hard not to when you have the door cracked and your ear pressed up to it," Carlton quipped. Jessica pursed her lips with an unenthused look as he dropped onto the foot of the bed.

Jessica ignored him and focused back on Charlie, sending a brief glance towards the closet as she tapped her fingers together. "So… What's the plan? If we're not telling Clay about you-know-who."

"The working plan is not telling Clay about you-know-who being you-know-what and then winging it," Charlie lightly joked. She could feel Sammy's fingers flex against hers and squeezed back.

"And he's in there now, right?" Marla asked, pointing a finger towards the closet. To which Charlie nodded. Suddenly, Marla got a more curious look on her face as she looked between her and the door. "…Clay's probably not coming back for a while if _he_ would like to come out." Carlton's eye shot open and he began to adamantly shake his head behind the brunette while she herself got a wider smile. "Just for a few minutes, if he wants to."

From the sudden stiffening of Sammy's hold, it was clear that he didn't want to. Charlie tried to let her down gently. "Maybe some other time. It's been a long day and he's not really comfortable being seen."

Thankfully, any further questioning or explanation was interrupted by Mike throwing open the guest room door and coming in. He was carrying Theodore under one arm and briefly glanced over the group.

"Oh hey, look who it is… Everybody." Without further comment, he walked past them and to the closet, holding up the rabbit to silently explain his intentions. He knocked twice on the door before reached the doll in. Sammy flinched back before recognizing who it was. "Here, you left this in the car," Mike said. There was a slightly apologetic tone to his voice.

Sammy released Charlie's hand momentarily to take Theodore with it. He caught Mike's hand with the other before he could pull it back, giving it a soft squeeze to show the reaction he couldn't vocalize.

"Yeah, no problem. That's what I'm here for," the man said. He had a slight smile for a moment, but it faded as he drew back and was faced with his circumstances again. He looked exhausted as he wandered over to the bed and made a shooing motion to Carlton. The young man scooted over and Mike gave him a thumbs up, then laid down on the bed and covered his face with a pillow.

Everyone in the room was almost in silent disbelief at it.

"Should we… Go?" Jessica whispered to Charlie. It seemed like the most courteous thing, and it give Charlie the opportunity for her to talk to her friends in private without leaving Sammy alone.

"Can you wait for me outside? I'll be there in a second." Jessica nodded and ushered the others out with her. John sent her a last look, but went willingly, probably knowing what she was about to do. Once they stepped out and closed the door most of the way, Charlie pulled the closet door open. "Sammy, I'm going to tell them what's going on."

Sammy gave a look akin to a cringe. "It doesn't mean I'm going to make you show yourself to them or anything like that, but we're going to need their help… I need their help, and I know we can't do this alone. Will you be okay staying here with Mike until I get back?" Sammy let out a pouting hum and nodded with defeat. Charlie smiled back. "Thanks. I won't be long, I promise."

Charlie shut the closet door halfway so that he would be comfortable and headed to the door. She let herself out into the hallway where her friends were waiting and began to turn to head to the living room.

"Guys," Charlie began as she shut the door behind her. The group stopped in the hallway and turned to look at her. "…The animatronics are tracking Sammy."

"What?" John asked in disbelief.

" _What_?!" Jessica followed. "But I thought- What about the murdered women?! What about you?!"

"They're still after me, that much I believe, but they were using Sammy to find me. He told me himself that he could feel a thumping in his head, like a signal when they got closer… That's the only thing that can explain why they found him out at the hotel, because I know they weren't there when we left. We would've seen something; Sammy would've felt something," Charlie explained. She took a shaky breath. "It's my worst nightmare. I just get my brother back and now something's trying to take him away again."

"But… Maybe there's a way to stop them from tracking him. Couldn't you build something to block the signal?" Marla suggested. "Or at worst try wrapping tinfoil on his head or something?"

"I don't know what to do. I can't do anything invasive to Sammy, I can't be sure that I could put him back together if I took him apart. And the signal must be strong if they're following it from across town and through buildings," Charlie admitted. She hugged herself with a concerned frown tight on her face and her eyes downcast. "…I can't protect him."

"Don't say that. Look, this… This really doesn't change anything," John suggested. She looked up to him, clinging to that hope. "All this does is tell us how they were able to follow you like they did. We'll just have to protect him like we were going to protect you," he said and she nodded in agreement. He gave a somewhat defeated sigh. "But if we want to do that, we'll have to tell Clay-."

"Don't," Carlton suddenly interrupted. Both turned back to him and saw his grim look. "…Okay, so Dad understood when we went to him about Baby, and he'd been pretty great with this whole 'animatronic monsters eating people' thing, but I think if we tell him that they're tracking Sammy that he's going to want to open him up."

"You don't think he would understand?" Charlie tried.

"I think he would understand, yeah… But I think he'll say that your safety and the safety of everyone in town is more important. Which I don't agree with, I'm not saying that!" he added, defensively raising his hands. "I just… I don't know. Maybe I'm underestimating my dad here, but that feels like something he would say. And that feels like something that would lead to you taking Sammy and splitting."

"We can't have that," Marla said firmly. "Let's just… Roll with this for now. We don't have to tell Clay right away. Like John said, it doesn't matter who they're tracking when they're going to be five feet away from each other anyway. Let's just take a deep breath and try to stay calm."

"Easier said than done now that we know those things are on the move," Lamar suggested. Marla waved him off.

"In any case, we should probably head back out to the living room. That way we can hear what's going on. Charlie, do you want to come out with us?"

"I should be with Sammy. I'd probably be a nervous wreck worrying about him if I wasn't, honestly," she replied with an apologetic smile. "It's not too late to head home while you still can."

"You're not getting rid of me that easily," John answered. He wrapped an arm around her shoulders and pulled her in to kiss her on the cheek. "If you hear anything, come get me."

"Thanks. I will." Charlie was relieved by his willingness and returned the kiss to his cheek, giving him a brief hug before letting him go. She walked the others head down the hall and out to the living room, save Jessica. She looked to the blond questioningly and received a smile in return.

"The last I checked, Sammy didn't care if I saw him," Jessica pointed out matter-of-factly. Charlie considered this before she added, "Besides, I need to come in and get my shoes."

They headed back into the guest room. Jessica retrieved her shoes from the side of the bed and slipped them on while Charlie headed to the closet to tell Sammy about what was going on. It could've been so easy to walk out of the room and leave them to their privacy, but Jessica found herself reluctant to go. Though this time it wasn't just for Charlie's wellbeing.

Maybe it was all that she had been told about him, or the danger he was in, or maybe because she had been able to see him fully for the first time, but Jessica's empathy for Sammy had changed. She had always sympathized with him with what she had been told, but now she saw him as a tangible being- a real person instead of just a name. She wanted to reach out.

She walked slowly towards the closet. Charlie acknowledged her and looked quizzical for a second but didn't stop her from gently pulling back the closet door.

Sammy was standing instead of kneeling in the closet. He was partially hunched as to not hit the closet rod and high shelves, showing how tall he was. It was a little intimidating. What was much less intimidating was the rabbit doll he had coddled in his grasp. There was an out of place smile on his face. Charlie recognized it as his default smile, Jessica could just tell it was forced.

But she gave him a sweet smile regardless. "Hey, Sammy," she said softly. "Charlie told us what's going on and I wanted you to know that we're behind you. We're going to make sure nothing happens to you or Charlie." She paused to see his reaction.

While Sammy's expression didn't change, his head very slightly moved in Charlie's direction like he was looking at her. Though because the lights were out of his eyes neither could see for sure. He looked back at Jessica again, posture stiff and guarded; he almost seemed confused, or maybe just unsure.

"I know this is all happening really fast. Like just a few days ago there was the storm and then all this… I just want you to know that I'm not- _We're_ not just here for Charlie. We're here for you too, even if we don't know each other that well. Maybe someday we can if that's alright with you. I think I'd really like to know more about you."

Sammy was very confused by this newfound boldness. Just earlier that night she had been so cautious just being in the same room with him, which hadn't surprised him People were afraid of him; whether they be workers aware of what the animatronics could do or parents uneased by his porcelain smile. Charlie and Mike were exceptions to the rule and even they originally flinched at the sight of him.

A change this drastic had to happen for a reason. Either a show made for Charlie's benefit or an attempt to get on his good side. People always wanted something. There was always a hidden motive.

…But if she did have one, he doubted it was malicious. While he knew little about her, he knew she genuinely cared about Charlie. Nobody would go through the lengths she had if they didn't. He would let his guard down for now, tilting down his mask as though conceding. She noticed the gesture.

"Can I stay?" she asked. He considered it a moment before giving a nod and a soft, but positive chime. Jessica inwardly breathed a sigh of relief and outwardly breamed. "Thanks, Sammy."

Jessica stayed for a while too. She sat on the floor outside of the closet and began to quietly talk to Sammy. Nothing related to the situation, just whatever distraction came to mind. She started with topics that stayed close to Charlie- the college, the diner, people they knew- and then strayed out to more random topics like movies or clothing trends, or the years she spent in New York.

It was working like a charm too. Charlie could tell from Sammy's body language alone that he was beginning to warm up to Jessica's presence. He was listening to her, only looking away to glance at the curtained window. He was more relaxed than earlier but was clearly still guarded, if his reluctance to move from the closet was any indication.

She wondered if his attachment to such a tight space had anything to do with what Mike said about him being in a box. That would explain why he slept in cardboard boxes. It was the thought of this box and what it must look like that reminded her of the box she had found down in Afton Robotics, the one she suspected had once held Sammy's body. It all clicked together and made her heart tighten in her chest.

But she didn't want to ask questions in front of Jessica. Not because she wanted to hide it from her, but because it would put Sammy on the spot. Questions about the box- and the bite- would have to wait until they were alone. Preferably without even Mike in the room. Some time when they were alone in the safety of daylight hours.

Eventually Jessica got too tired to stay up and longer and left for the other guest room. Charlie stayed, instead deciding to shut off the overhead light and keep the door cracked enough to let in the light from the hall. She took a pillow from the bed and the throw blanket and used both to make a makeshift pallet beside the closet. It was more of a comfort thing because she doubted she would be able to sleep.

She also had no intention of sleeping in the same bed as Mike. She had to draw the line somewhere.

The room felt too quiet now, though she kept reminding herself it was a good thing. If it was quiet then they could hear if anything came up to the window Sammy was watching. He certainly wouldn't be sleeping tonight and she knew no amount of convincing would change that. They would sit here in the same boat and wait until morning. Him wrapped in her jacket, her cocooned in the throw.

They had been like that for a while, but she didn't know how long, when she felt a weight at the corner of the pillow. She realized it was Sammy's head and stayed still to keep him from popping back up. It was better than him rigidly sitting upright like he had been. Charlie breathed deeply as she dared to close her eyes for a moment.

Morning couldn't come soon enough.

* * *

As stakeouts went, this wasn't the worst one that Officer Perez had been on. He had gotten enough warning to take a nap before coming to the house and was currently nursing a thermos of warm, over-sugared coffee to keep him awake. Not that he was having any problems with that. The situation alone was enough to keep him alert.

In the passenger's seat was Officer King. Before this moment, the two hadn't ever worked together, but King wasn't the worst choice for a would-be partner. He had been in the force two years longer than Perez had and had a hand in some of the bigger cases in the city, though that wasn't saying much. At least neither of them got stuck with Dunn, elsewise they wouldn't be settled in this comfortable silence.

Or they were until Perez lowered his thermos and caught a glimpse of something past the corner of the house. He squinted and leaned up on the dash. "Did you see that?"

"No. What was it?"

"Kind of looked like someone walking around the house… Hold on." Perez lifted the radio to his mouth and spoke into it. "Chief, I think I saw someone going around the south side of the house."

There was a quick response. _"Are you sure it looked like a person?"_

"No, I couldn't get a clear look at it. It was halfway through the bushes," Perez admitted. He could hear Clay's discontentment in the silence that followed. "We'll go check it out," he offered.

"… _Alright but be careful. No sudden movements, keep your eyes peeled, and keep your taser raised. Remember, your guns will not work on these things."_

"Got it. We'll keep you posted."

Perez and King existed the police car and began to slowly approach the side of the house. Unlike many of the houses in the area that were set tightly together with thinly groomed years, Clay's house was backed up by a line of trees and circled by a few overgrown bushes. It was harder to get a clear view. King led the way close to the wall with his taser out and his flashlight raised.

Under normal circumstances the police would've announced their presence and called for their suspect to come out, but in this case, they knew any loud noises could rouse something much worse. Now King hadn't been in the Afton Robotics raid and wasn't sure how much of it he could believe, but he decided to take the chief's warnings during the briefing to heart and didn't treat it like a normal case.

It wasn't until he leaned around the corner that he realized how lucky it was that he did. There, standing only twelve feet away at most, was a behemoth if he had ever seen one. Cloaked in the shadow of the house, it was facing the wall and hunched against it, almost entirely covering the window it was leaning against. The cop cautiously lifted his light and cast it upon the creature.

They went in expecting animals- or he still had- but what he was looking at looked much more akin to an overgrown teddy bear than a real bear. There was even dirtied stuffing leaking out of a torn seam on its elbow. Its fabric was a disgusting moldy yellow and it had a discolored purple stripe around its middle. Most of its head and face was blocked by its lifted arm that was resting on the wall.

What wasn't obscured was the large hand resting on the window frame. A soft tapping noise drew King's eyes to it and he could see that a single, blade-like claw was tapping on the glass. The thing's face was pressed into the window like it was struggling to stay upright… Or struggling to see something inside.

King leaned back behind the corner to mutter to Perez, "Call in." He leaned back in to keep an eye on the creature as Perez lifted the radio to his mouth and spoke softly.

"We've got visual. It's a bot."

The radio crackled. _"What character?"_

"It's a bear," King said. Deciding to take over himself, he turned on his own radio. "It's a bear so it could be Freddy. He's leaning against one of the windows and might be looking for a way inside."

" _Has he noticed you?"_

"Negative. No response to the flashlight either." King was going to hate doing this, but he dared to ask, "Should we engage?" There was a long pause on the other end.

" _Approach with caution and see if you can get a clear shot with the taser, but don't fire anything just yet. I'm sending backup towards you."_

"10-4." King lowered his radio and started to slowly step back around the corner. "Stay close," he muttered back to Perez. He didn't need to be told twice, though taking that first step around the corner wasn't easy.

The two cops got within eight feet of the creature and could now see it in more detail. King kept his flashlight low as to not trigger a newfound reaction, but the bear didn't seem to care about them at all. Both cops held their stun guns up and aimed at the beast's exposed size, but neither pulled the trigger, waiting instead for the backup to arrive.

But before the other police officers could arrive, a bloodcurdling shriek echoed out from the tree line. Perez flinched towards the house and King's head snapped over, keeping his stun gun still aimed at the bear as he looked through the trees. Neither man could see anything, but they could hear a voice calling out from the foliage.

"Oh God, oh God, somebody help me! Help!" a woman screamed. She sounded half out of breath and utterly horrified as she continued begging, "Help! _Help!_ " It didn't take them long to jump to a conclusion.

"They have the girl!" Perez exclaimed. The girl they were protecting, that would be. He didn't know how something could've gotten her out of the house without them noticing, but he knew it had to be her.

King swore under his breath and turned on his radio. "There's a woman screaming from the woods. I'm pursuing on foot," he said. Then without a word to Perez, he ran towards the trees and after the screams. Perez didn't even have a chance to question this or whether someone was supposed to stay with the bear. The only answer he got was overhearing a warning Burke gave over the receiver.

" _Watch your step for bear traps and open holes- and watch your back! It's not alone."_

Resolve strengthen by the sound of more officers running down along the side of the house, Perez steadied himself and ran into the trees after King.

The unkept underbrush made it difficult to keep up. The flashlight struggled to illuminate the way and sent a crisscross of shadows across the trees. It would've disorienting if not for Perez's eyes being focused mostly on the ground. An unwise decision if not for the threat of a cold, metal vice slamming shut around his ankle. He followed the screams and the steadily fading footsteps as he fell further behind.

Until King suddenly gave a short yelp. Perez's head snapped upright at the sound. "Donnie?!" he called out.

"I'm caught! It's got me!" King yelled back. His panicked voice blended in against the frantic cries of the woman. Leaping through the bushes, Perez broke into a sprint, fearing for the worst.

What he found was worse than anything he could've comprehended. King was being dragged along the ground as he desperately scraped at the ground for something to grab onto. Perez grabbed his hand only to have him yanked back firmly, pulling the younger officer with him and causing him to stagger out of the other side of the tree line. The woman screamed from nearby and Perez looked up to see her.

Except that she wasn't a woman at all. She was a monster.

Standing on the road behind the house and illuminated in the flashlight's glow, there stood another hulking monster. This one was a brighter, but still disgustingly dull yellow and its head was shaped like a bird's. Large empty sockets held small, glowing eyes and its gaping faux beak revealed a rusty speaker deep inside. That was the source of the screams, not pleads for help but the final moments of its last victim.

Its body was large and bell shaped with the fabric torn away in the front to reveal an endoskeleton frame. Though this seemed to be on purpose as there was a barred metal hatch swinging open in the front. Perez realized that its body was less shaped like a bell and more resembled a bird cage. Its arms looked borderline useless, both thin and spindly with long, sharp fingers that rested on its belly.

A metal wire stuck out from inside that bulbous frame and was currently cinched around King's ankle, a snare.

Now out of the trees, King no longer had anything substantial to hold onto. One hand was still tightly gripped to Perez's while the other dug into the dirt to try and hold on. But it didn't stop the slow drag. He would get a second or two of stillness, then a sharp pull a foot back. The beast that resembled Chica was slowly pulling him in towards her waiting belly.

"Shoot it! For God's sake, what the hell are you doing- shoot it!" King begged.

For a split-second Perez froze, not knowing if the metal wire would conduct the shock. Then he realized that the alternative was much worst. He released King to aim the stun gun and finally decided on the soft, moldy fabric of the bot's head. He fired the two darts into it and sent an electrical current directly through its head. The creature's whole body convulsed before its head fell forward and its eyes grew dim.

It might've been a victory if not for the fact that suddenly the wire began to reel in much faster and without any pause. Now deactivated it naturally retracted its snare, which was still tightly holding King's ankle. Realizing he couldn't fight the wire, with it tightening painfully on his ankle when he did, King halted his efforts to try and reach down and slip it off. He was rapidly closing in on the gaping belly.

Perez was on the verge of complete panic as he called into his radio. "We need backup! We're at the road-!"

He was cut off by sound of rapid thumping from behind as something that snuck up behind him ran in for the kill. He turned around in time to see it coming towards him in a sluggish gaunt, a hideously twisted rabbit, Gluetrap Bonnie. With the stun gun still discharged, Perez had no choice but to bring out his handgun and fired two shots at the rabbit's head.

One bullet tore through the rotten fabric at the top of its head while the second shattered its right eye. It didn't even flinch, and it didn't stop it from lifting its disfigured arm and spraying the man with its caustic tar. Perez shielded his face but the noxious mixture burned the skin of his left hand and scalp, sliding in under his sleeve and sticking to whatever it could reach and searing it.

Perez staggered back before Bonnie bounded in and slammed its body into his, knocking him forcefully to the ground. It slapped its hand down on his chest, claws cutting through his uniform, and forcibly held him down with enough weight that it was almost suffocating. He fought against it and tried to slide out of its grasp as it twitched and leaned in, pressing the heated end of its wrist sprout against his lips so hard that they bruised against his teeth. He knew what was coming, and he could hear the boiling in its belly.

King was in no better of a position. While Perez was engaged by Bonnie, and with nobody to help him, he was dragged leg first into Chica. He could feel his foot pulled upwards and twisted into the mechanisms hiding inside. Bones broke in unseen metal teeth and King gave a pained yell. He didn't stop fighting though, planting his hands on the sides of the opening and shoving his other foot somewhere into the back to push off.

Chica's fingers came down to meet him. Jabbing into his hands, arms, and sides with nails like thumbtacks as it tried to encourage him to let go and be swallowed. They stabbed shallowly into his skin.

This was the scene that Clay Burke and the others came up on. Their faces twisted in shock and disgust, and they moved in quickly. Multiple darts were fired into Bonnie's back and the beast was hit with an electrical charge much more severe than the one Chica had been put through. It seized and shuddered, limbs twisting and body rocking, finally wrenching its twisted arm off of Perez's face.

Unfortunately, it was a few seconds too late to spare him the gush of glue splattering over his head and torso. Perez hissed through clenched teeth at the burn, trying to shield his eyes or risk being blinded. With Bonnie stunned and him seconds from suffocating under the fluid, the men ran in to shove the animatronic aside while Dunn tried to drag him out from under it.

They only had a second before Bonnie roused and it came back even more aggressive than it had gone under. Its entire upper body twisted so violently that it gave a loud crack and fluid gushed out of tear in its side and oozed down its fabric. It swung out with its complete arm and backhanded one of the men so hard that it left a shallow slice in his cheek and knocking him back into Clay.

But then the beast did something entirely unexpected. Its eyes quickly jumped around to focus on each man- not like it was contemplating or thinking, but like it was counting them- and then it tore its claw into the ground right on the other side of Perez and pulled itself to its feet. It stumbled over his body, just barely missing crushing the man's arm with its foot and began to flee back into the trees.

"Don't let it get away! Use the other-!" Clay started barking orders and cut off when he saw the other situation occurring mere feet nearby. Bonnie having blocked his view of the man half lodged in Chica and the two officers trying to assist him. Priorities changed immediately. "Forget the rabbit! You two get Perez stabilized, the rest of you get King- and don't go shocking that thing while he's still in there!"

While Chica still continued to focus on and scratch at King's face and arms, Larson reached in with his multitool and managed to follow the man's leg to the snare. The wire was tight around the ankle, but he had to force the pliers underneath to clip them, unable to reach into the metal teeth to clip further up. He could see that King's foot was twisted at an unnatural angle.

Two officers held back Chica's arms while the rest worked on pulling both King and Larson out. As King was being dragged out, Chica scraped down his mangled leg and he nearly screamed. No amount of adrenaline could guise the pain from his injury. Just the sight of it twisted the stomachs of even some of the most hardened cops.

They didn't give the monstrosity a moment to retaliate. As soon as the man was free, they fired upon it, sending numerous charges into its belly. Though unlike Bonnie this seemed to have no effect.

"Aim for the head!" King called out. Though before anyone could, something impossible strange occurred. Chica fell into itself.

Its body fell straight to the ground, sucking up its legs inside of itself so that nothing of them showed. Its arms popped and folded in at the elbow before pulling inside. One of them reached out from the belly to shut the hatch door as the head sunk into itself. Within seconds, the beast was little more than an oversized gumdrop shaped egg covered in a thin layer of nasty fabric. Its eyes could be seen glowing through the holes before they went dark. The low hum from its speaker died. It went entirely dormant.

"What's it doing?" one officer asked. Another shrugged and dared to take a step closer, which didn't go unnoticed.

"Don't go near that thing! You don't know what it's going to do!" King snapped. The man stopped where he was and didn't dare another step.

Clay didn't trust that the bot would stay in this shutdown state for long, but he also didn't trust that they truly ran off Bonnie. Or that the rest of the animatronics weren't currently back at his house. It occurred to him then that if Chica had been luring them away to give the others a better chance that she would have succeeded. Most of the police force was now out here on the road instead of watching the intended target.

Clay snapped up his radio immediately and began to call through, "We have two officers down. Send an ambulance." Then lowered it to address his men. "Three of your stay with the animatronic. If it gets up then aim for the head. Don't let it get away from you. Dunn, Harris, stay with King and Perez until the ambulance gets here. The rest of you come with me. We're heading back to the house."

It would be a long night indeed.

* * *

Charlie wasn't sure if she had fallen asleep or not when she opened her eyes a sliver and caught something black moving above her. The following rush of alarm roused her in seconds, but then faded just as quickly when she realized it was just Sammy. Though she still found it weird to realize he was crawling around on the ceiling in a way that completely defied gravity.

It was only when he turned his head towards the window that she saw his face. He had a stoic look with no smile and eyes somehow both intensely focused and slightly frantic. She knew from that look alone that something bad was happening, and this was only confirmed when she heard the sound of heavy footsteps through the bedroom wall. Something was walking along the house towards the window.

Charlie sat up quickly, catching the attention of Sammy who looked at her with glowing pupils, and silently started to beckon him. He didn't move from his spot, instead gesturing to the window with his eyes, like he thought she didn't hear it. Like there was any way that she couldn't have heard it. She beckoned more insistently when she heard it stop outside the window.

Its mass seemed to collapse against the wall. Sammy began to give a low, dialing hum as he stared at the window in a crouch. Almost like he was about to spring out and attack anything if it got through. Charlie could only hope that it couldn't, especially since the side of it sounded too big to squeeze through the window.

Then she heard it. A soft scraping before a dull tapping on the window. A claw poking the glass and sliding down a small bit before repeating the process. This was the same scratching he must've heard at the apartment and at the motel, but it was only now, after all this time, that Charlie suddenly had an epiphany. She had heard that scratching noise before.

She had heard it at the house the night of the tornado. She was sure it had to be the same thing. It was quicker here, but it held a similar rhythm. If that was true then that meant they had been following them since that night. That they could've broken down the bedroom door and reached them in seconds.

…What stopped them?

Sammy dropped onto the carpet beside her so suddenly and soundlessly that she jumped. He was still in that crouched, ready-to-spring pose and moved in protectively beside her. She reached out for his wrist and held onto it tightly, ready to physically hold him back if she had to. She knew she needed to wake up Mike and warn the others, but she felt frozen in that spot, afraid even a noise would set the monster off.

There was a moment where Charlie heard voices outside and expected it to be the cops. She didn't know whether to be relieved or terrified, knowing that she could soon be listening to a massacre. Then came a distant scream, loud enough to cause Sammy to flinch and her to bite down so hard that her jaw ached, and it sounded like the cops left. Now they were alone with this thing outside the window.

The tapping continued without pause, rhythmically pecking and sliding on the glass without trying to get in. Sammy knew it was trying to coax him to the window. That was the only explanation for why the tapping matched the pattern of the pulses in his head. It angered him, so much so that if the window was open, he might've gone after it- though he couldn't trust that this wasn't exactly what it wanted.

It felt like ages before they could hear voices in the distance. The cops were returning, and this time it sounded like there were more of them. This was what finally stopped the tapping. They could hear the groaning of the creature's joints as it lifted up from the window and walked down the length of the house away from the cops. By time the men reached the window, the beast could no longer be heard.

Charlie silently got up and went over to shut and lock the guest room door. Then she sat down alongside her brother and continued to watch the window with him. Sunrise felt like it came within the hour.

No feeling of security ever came.


	10. Sinking

Charlie was surprised that she had gotten any sleep at all. It couldn't have been much from how groggy and disoriented she felt. That didn't stop her from looking for Sammy, but he wasn't beside her or in the closet. Her jacket was left draped over her and Theodore was propped on the pillow beside her. She sat up quickly and looked around.

"Sammy?" she called.

"Up here."

Charlie looked to the bed to see a familiar white mask leaning over to look down at her, with the voice confirming that Mike was nearby too.

Charlie got to her feet and found that they were both still in the room with her. Mike was sitting in an armchair in the corner by the door with his legs cross and a book in his hands. From the cover it looked like it was a western, so it was probably one of Clay's. Sammy was sitting on the bed with a stack of printer paper and a pen, looking like he had been sketching. Mike probably found the supplies wherever he got the book.

Though even before Charlie could say anything, she noticed something wrong with Sammy. He was slow to straighten himself back up from leaning over, and as he did he seemed to teeter a little, even when he was kneeling like he always did. Every movement looked just a little looser. His mask looked a more distant too, with a small smile that seemed too much like his fake one.

"Morning, guys. I guess we survived another night," Charlie said. She pulled on her jacket and sat down on the bed beside Sammy, who gave her a soft chime of agreement. It sounded fainter than usual. She hid her concern and instead looked over at Mike. "You didn't have to wait for me to get up, but thanks."

"Don't thank me yet. I'm just hiding out in here until the coast is clear," Mike admitted with a small smirk. It then switched to a more uncomfortable grimace as he pointed his thumb at the door. "I tried to go out about an hour ago and walked in on Burke and his wife having an _intense_ conversation, so I backed out with my hands up and have been here ever since." He then glanced towards Sammy like he was gesturing for her to look. "Besides, I needed to keep an eye on him… He's not doing too well."

"I can see that," Charlie said with a sigh. She didn't know if it was for Sammy or the knowledge that Clay and Betty were fighting and knew she was a part of it. She couldn't do anything about that though, so she focused her attention on her brother. "I'm guessing you didn't sleep at all last night. Did you, Sammy?" she asked gently.

Sammy gave a weary chime back with wavering and weak sounding static. His shoulders slumped a little more as he turned his head to look up at her, though didn't seem bothered to lift it. She gave him a sympathetic smile and reached out to rub his back.

"You're going to have to try to get a little rest today. I know it's not going to be easy to relax after last night, but you're not going to hold up like this," Charlie coaxed gently. Sammy flipped through the papers and brought one out with a few responses already written on it. He wrote a quick reply.

" _Maybe later."_ Charlie gave a discontent hum.

"You wouldn't think a bot would even need sleep if they don't have a night mode," Mike chimed in. Book set open on his lap and his full attention on the twins. "How's that work exactly?"

"I'm not sure. Not having a night mode has something to do with it. I don't know the exact specifics of it all, but even though Sammy's haunting the body he _is_ the body too. Hardware gets overworked and isn't getting a chance to shut down, and hasn't really shut down for a significant time in days," Charlie tried to explain. "He might be able to explain it better than I can."

When she turned to her brother, she expected him to be reacting to them talking about him, only to realize he was looking down at the half-drawn sketch with an almost puzzled squint, like he was trying to figure out where he was going with the drawing. He wasn't paying attention at all. For someone like Sammy, who was always listening in, this was a warning sign. This was where she drew the line.

"…I change my mind. Sammy, you need to get some sleep and the sooner the better," Charlie said with slightly more authority. Sammy seemed unshaken and tapped the 'maybe later' with his pen. "No, maybe now. You're barely sitting up on your own."

There came the pouting right on schedule. Charlie definitely felt it more now trapped in this situation, but she held her ground and matched him guilt trip to guilt trip.

"Please, Sammy? I have to go see Clay and find out what happened last night, but it's going to be a lot harder to focus on that when I know you're in here forcing yourself to stay awake. Since I know that if you stay up long enough, you're not going to get a chance to sleep at all," she tried gently. Sammy started to falter immediately, lowering his gaze. She squeezed his shoulder. "I promise you'll be okay."

If not for his exhaustion he might've put up more of a fight, but he just didn't have the energy or willpower to push this off. Especially when he knew she was right. He caved with a limp little nod.

"Thanks," Charlie said, giving him a smile. "I should probably go see if Clay's out there waiting for me. Do you want to keep my jacket?" He shook his head and hooked a long arm around her, squeezing her briefly before giving her an assuring nudge towards the bedroom door. "Okay, I'll be back later. Love you, Sammy." He chimed in return and she left the room.

While shutting the door, Charlie noticed her bag sitting on the floor beside it with a note resting on top. She unfolded the note and found a short message.

" _Morning, Charlie. Had to leave for work, so I'll be back as soon as my shift ends. Call me if you wake up. -John."_

Charlie got an amused smile at that 'if' he snuck in. Then she scooped up her bag and headed into the bathroom. She changed into a cucumber green short-sleeved shirt and dark denim jeans and tried to get her hair into a manageable position with the brush. She didn't want to look as exhausted as she was sure she would soon feel. At least she couldn't see any signs of shadows under her eyes.

Once she was ready, she left the bathroom and went out into the living room to face her friends, excluding John. Though to her mild surprise she realized that he wasn't the only one who had left. Jessica and Lamar were gone, which made sense with their schedules. She assumed Marla had left too when she found Carlton alone on the couch watching tv.

"Hey. Morning," Charlie greeted him. He looked back at her.

"You're about three or four hours late for morning, but glad to see you up. We were starting to get a little worried," he lightly teased. She playfully rolled her eyes at him. "Everyone had to take off and do whatever, but they all told me that they're coming back. That includes Dad too."

"Clay's not here?" Charlie asked in mild surprise. He shook his head. She knew she shouldn't have been disappointed but she was almost relieved to get a few more minutes to wake up. "At least he wasn't waiting for me."

"No, that was Marla. She'll be back in a second, she's raiding the fridge," Carlton said matter-of-factly. Charlie sat down on the opposite couch and glanced at the television, which was currently airing commercials. They were so familiar that they were almost soothing. "How's Sammy?" Carlton asked, breaking the silence again.

"Doing as good as to be expected. Mike's in there with him."

"I'm not surprised. He walked out on one of the Burkes' patented "parental debates". Which I happened to see since I was also out here watching it. Lamar too, but you better believe that he split the second he got a chance." While Carlton tried to hold an amused tone, Charlie could tell that he was upset about it. Like he wanted to talk to someone about it.

"Mike told me, but you can't really tell when he's exaggerating or not… What was the fight about?" she dared to ask.

"Not you, if that's what you're thinking… Okay, a little about you, but more about how Dad handled this thing with you. So, apparently Mom didn't know about everything going on last night. I don't know how she didn't know or what he told her, but when she found out that he was protecting you here and that the robots were all outside trying to get in, she flipped. She was saying, like, 'You knew she wasn't going to be safe here. You should've taken her to the police station. You were just using her as bait, what were you thinking?'"

"So, it was about me," Charlie concluded.

"Oh no, Mom made it very clear that it was about him… And about me being here when it all went down. I told her that I had to fight Dad to stay, but I don't think it made any difference. After they were done taking shots at each other, Mom packed her bags and left, and then Dad left later."

Charlie was startled by that last comment. "She _packed her bags_? Did she say where she was going? Is- Is she planning on coming back?"

"I don't know. She said she was going to stay at my aunt's house for a little while, but I think this is it," Carlton said with a sigh. "We all knew this was coming. If it wasn't this, it would've been something else."

Betty Burke was a good mother; she was the last person Charlie expected to just leave her family like this. Carlton didn't seem too concerned about it, but for Charlie it was a horrifying thought, because she knew how easy it was for someone to walk away from their family and erase any trace of them. Her own mother had done the same thing and she hadn't talked to her since.

"Carlton, I'm so sorry," Charlie apologized. Just knowing she was involved made her feel somewhat at fault. "Do you think maybe I could talk to her and explain what happened?"

"I don't think it would change anything. I'm serious, Charlie, it's not about you," Carlton reaffirmed. His face had fallen a little and was letting his true feelings through even while he continued to deny them. For someone who wanted so badly to get into acting, he had a poor poker face. "I'm not shocked she left. I'm just surprised she bought the whole psycho animatronic thing. I guess they must've done a number to the outside of the house or something."

The two fell into a silence for a few moments. This was right when Marla came in with two plates with sandwiches and chips neatly placed on them. It was clearly lunch for her and Carlton. From her somewhat subdued smile, Charlie could tell that she had been listening and waiting for the proper time to come in.

"Here you go," Marla chirped. She handed Carlton his plate and pecked a kiss to his cheek. He thanked her and she turned towards Charlie. "Hey, Charlie! Would you like a sandwich? The stuff is right in there; I could make one in two seconds if you're hungry."

"Thanks, but I'm not really hungry yet. I might pick something up while I'm out if I feel like it," Charlie declined with a smile. Carlton's eyes shot up from the sandwich with surprise.

"Where are you going? I think Dad was planning on you sticking around here," he said.

"I was thinking about going back to the house and checking something out. I heard some noises last night and it got me thinking about the night of the storm. I'm going to see if I can find a way down into the basement," Charlie admitted. Normally she would be reluctant to tell them at the fear they would stop her, but she had learned the risks of going alone without telling anyone. The risk wasn't worth it.

Carlton raised his brows and Marla scrunched her face uncertainly. "Into the hole?" she asked and Charlie nodded. "Well, okay. Just be careful. A fall like that could do serious damage. Mike's going with you, right?"

"No, he's going to stay and watch Sammy. I was planning on going alone… Unless you two would like to tag along with me?" Charlie asked with a convincing smile. She just didn't feel safe going alone this time even though it was daylight out. Thankfully, regardless f her warnings, Marla perked up at the idea.

"Sure! We're not doing anything except sitting here anyways. Give me just two second to get a couple of bites." Marla then proceeded to speed through three quick bites of the sandwich, eating like she was about to bolt from the room. Charlie had to suppress a snicker.

"Go ahead and eat. I'm going to go tell Mike we're leaving and get some stuff together anyways. You have time," Charlie said. She got up and headed back to the guest room.

Charlie was relieved to see that Sammy had already taken her advice and was curled up under the blankets. He was just a lump underneath the comforter. It was cute, she thought, and smiled to herself.

Then she turned to Mike, who was still in the chair reading and looking bored out of his mind. She caught his attention with a wave and half-whisper half-mouthed to him, "I'm going out to check on the house and see if I can find anything in the basement. Do you want me to pick you up something while I'm out?"

Mike quirked a brow with mild interest. She wondered if he was going to ask any questions about why she was going to look in her own basement, especially when he beckoned her over. She just decided to be completely forthright with him and hope that Sammy didn't wake up and find out before she got back.

Any concerns were dashed when Mike instead pulled out his wallet, pulled out a ten-dollar bill, and handed it over.

"You know that burger place by the turnoff to the four lane? Just get me one of everything off the dollar menu. I'm planning on holding up in here for a while. Thanks."

Charlie got a touch of a smirk at the suggestion, but agreed, and he didn't ask anymore questions before she left again.

She shut the door quietly and headed back down the hall and out into the living room. Apparently, she came back quicker than her friends had expected because their positions had changed significantly. The two were locked in a secure embrace, with Carlton's head limply dropped on Marla's shoulder while she gently ran her fingers through his hair. She murmured something, but Charlie couldn't hear it from the hallway.

She didn't want to break up this moment. Charlie quietly stepped back into the hallway and gave them a few more minutes, distracting herself by briefly going through her bag. She eventually came out a few minutes later and they separated, acting like nothing had happened, and finished up quickly before they left together.

Charlie's house was the same now as it was a few days ago, though the newfound revelation of the animatronics once being here made it much more intimidating. The three got the ladder from behind the house, an old metal one worn by age but still strong enough to support human weight- if barely- and carefully maneuvered it inside and down into the hole in the workshop floor.

That smell still radiated from out of the crater. Not as strong as a few days ago, but still lingering in the air. Charlie noticed it while she was pausing to listen for any signs of scratching or movement. There was none and so she carefully started to climb down.

"I'm not going to stay down there long. You two stay up here and keep a lookout, okay?" she asked. Marla nodded but Carlton seemed uncertain. It wasn't until Charlie was stepping down onto the floor that he caved with a groan and started to climb down.

"Wait, I'm coming too," Carlton said. With a tone like he had been pestered into going with her when the only one pushing him was himself and his own curiosity.

Soon the two were standing beside each other in the cold, dark basement, wading in the remains of the collapsed ceiling and floor. Charlie had brought with her a flashlight and Mike's taser which she turned on and held ready respectively. She shined the light over the expanse of the room and was surprised to see how much larger it was than she had expected.

The wall under the hallway stretched beyond where the garage ended and the space was filled with shelves and abandoned prototypes. Two endoskeleton's rested against the shelves, one crumpled into a sitting position and the other stood stiffly. They looked like the typical endoskeletons used in Freddy animatronics. The shelves were lined with spare parts, enough to make a third or fourth skeleton.

Carlton tapped her on the back. "Hey, take a look at that," he said. She turned around and he pointed her towards the opposite wall.

There was a massive hole in the wall. Cement bricks were reduced to little more than rubble and left enough room to leave a gaping tunnel back into the dirt. It looked about the same size as the holes Beartrap Freddy left in the ground, so it was likely that he was the one who dug the tunnel. It confirmed her worst fears.

"That must've been the scratching I heard the night of the storm. They were down here…" Charlie said. Though something didn't seem to make sense about that. She shined her light over the rest of the room. "…But something's off. Why would they break in through the basement when all the other times they broke in through the windows?"

"Why didn't they just climb in the windows if they were already broken?" Carlton added. There had to be some other explanation.

Right then was when the light landed on something neither expected to see. Against the back wall, right under where her father's workshop was placed, was an almost identical workbench desk and shelves matching the ones in the room above. Though that wasn't what caught their attention. It was the large, security door left wide-open beside it that did.

"Whoa. Now that's weird," Carlton commented. They came in closer to get a better look. "That looks like one of those doors from Afton Robotics. What was that doing down here?"

"I don't know, but we're going to find out." She noticed wires coming from a panel on the left side of the door that led underneath a piece of the collapsed floor. She knelt and shing the light under to see a broken piece of machinery underneath. She recognized the square shape. "There's a generator connected to the door."

"A generator? Why wasn't it just connected to the house's electricity?"

"I'm not sure…" She stood and looked behind the generator. She could barely see a cord plugged into a wall outlet. "I think it was. The generator must've been used for backup if the power went out."

"Makes sense." Carlton leaned into the doorway before Charlie could stop him and squinted into the darkness. He couldn't see much, but a slow look of realization crossed his face. "So… Charlie…" he drew out slowly. He pointed between the hole and the door like making a connection. "I think those things came out of here."

They didn't even have enough evidence yet to prove this and Charlie still had a feeling he was right. A twisting feeling rising inside. An inner voice saying, _"Ah! Yes! Of course they did! That just makes sense."_ It shouldn't have made sense, but it did. A security door in the basement, a generator to keep it from opening, and the growing panic at the realization that they had been down here the _entire time._

Charlie didn't say anything as she shined the light into and around the next room. It was nothing more than an empty room with metal line walls. There didn't look to be any restraints of any kind. The only thing of not was a large, circular light source in the center of the ceiling, dead without the supply of electricity. It stood out so much that she wondered if it was made to control the beasts.

Still not saying anything, Charlie drew back from the doorway and looked towards the desk with the hope she would find something to explain this. She did too, as her eyes fell on a cassette player resting on the edge of the desk. There was already a tape in it and rewound to the beginning. She knew right away that it had been left by her father; she remembered that he had an affinity for cassettes.

She pressed the play button and listened as her father's voice spoke from beyond the grave.

" _If you are listening to this, then that means that the basement door is no longer sealed and that the monsters I've tried so hard to keep restrained are on the cusp of freedom. I ask you, whoever you are, to immediately leave this basement and reseal the door. If you will not or- dare I say- cannot do this, then I ask you to leave the security door be and find a tape labelled 'Butchers' on my desk. It shouldn't be far from this one. It should answer any questions you have. Under any circumstances, do not open the door."_

The tape ended unceremoniously after that, leaving them with few answers and more questions.

"They were down here. The whole time I've been living here they've been down in this basement, in that room, with nothing more than a single door holding them back," Charlie said with growing dread.

"And I thought the stuff Dad was putting in our basement was bad. Remind me to never come complaining to you the next time he stashes something down there… Unless it's one of these things, then I plead the first," Carlton said. While he kept his wording playful, it was clear that he was as shocked as she was. "So, did he build these things and hide them down here?"

"I don't know… Here, help me find that tape. We're going to figure this out right now," Charlie said. There was a box of tapes pushed to the back of the workbench that she pulled out and started going through. Many of them weren't labelled or addressed with dates that wouldn't clarify anything, but she soon found one with a worn white label and the word 'Butchers' written in black marker.

She popped the tape in the player, made sure it was rewound, and began to play it.

" _I have finally found and secured the Butcher animatronics, but I still don't feel safe. I feel less like I am sealing them away and more like I am just buying time until their eventual escape, but there's nothing else I can do at this time. Their programming has made sure of it… These models have been labelled as 'The Butchers', though I would argue and say their creator is the true butcher and that these are just his tools. They were created by my former partner for one purpose… To hunt down my family."_

Charlie inhaled deeply.

" _The Butchers are designed to hunt humans. They have no secondary functions, no falsified pretense that they were made for entertainment. From their design to their mechanics they are only made to kill. Lying in wait during the daytime hours and venturing out at night as to not be detected. They don't rationalize or feel sympathy, and even their own self-preservation is just based on their goal to reach their chosen victims._

_Not only do they have pictures of both my daughter and wife in their coding, but they had been programmed to keep time and age them accordingly. Though without the ability to think, I doubt they can differentiate between victims. They will indiscriminately kill whoever matches their vague description. I have no doubt that this was exactly what he wanted. He made these things to slaughter as many as they could._

… _And to kill those I hold dear in one last act of ruthlessness. My wife- my former wife- has left the state. I know she is safe for now, but I worry that they will eventually break free and find my daughter… And my son-… Let me explain. There are five Butcher animatronics, and their designs and functions are based off of both the Freddy characters they resemble and the traps built into them. First is Freddy, designed as a bear trap-."_

A dull thump caught Carlton's attention. He looked back over the basement room with paranoia. "Did you hear that?" he whispered.

Charlie shook her head, but she didn't seem to be paying much attention. Instead to focused on what her father was saying about Freddy and then Chica right afterwards.

There was a strange shifting noise. This time it sounded like something spilling, like… dirt. Carlton slowly turned back to the hole in the wall and his face twisted up in terror.

"Oh fffff _foxy_."

Charlie's head snapped to attention and she looked back, only to gawk with equal horror at the sight of a rusty muzzle sliding out of the hole in the wall. In an instant, she snatched up the tape player, shut it off, and both she and Carlton quickly ducked through the security door and into the room behind it. They held tight to the wall and listened to see if it was following.

They could hear the animatronic shuffling around in the next room, but it wasn't rushing then. Which either meant that it hadn't seen them or that it had seen them and was setting whatever its trap was. Eventually the suspense got to her and Charlie was convinced into peeking around the corner, and that was where she caught first sight of the butchered version of Foxy.

It had crawled out of the hole on all fours before climbing to its feet. Its back was hunched over like a werewolf, thick and tumorous above its small, sturdy legs. A tattered vest that looked like it once resembles a pirate's jacket barely closed around its chest, but was shredded halfway down the arms. The arms were a sight too, with the right arm's hook being replaced by what looked like a spear or harpoon.

Comically enough, the left arm's hand was replaced by what looked like a miniature cannon. Though Charlie doubted that was what it was. It connected to an arm as fate around as it was, swollen out and spilling what looked like thin rope out of a slice in the top of it. Foxy's face was equally gruesome, with the fabric of its muzzle worn away to reveal the metal endoskeleton underneath and razor-sharp teeth waiting.

It was only when it turned itself in the desk's direction that Charlie noticed something amiss with its eyes. The one that was supposed to be an eyepatch was replaced with what looked like a jeweler's loupe, but the eyes were darkened, with only the left one shining slightly. They flickered as the fox staggered towards the desk before falling dim when it stopped.

" _I hope it's blind. Please let this thing be blind,"_ Charlie begged inwardly as she hid behind the wall again. She held the taser tighter as she heard scraping against the desk, the heavy footsteps, and Foxy coming closer.

Inching closer to the door. There was nothing to hide behind in this containment room, it would see them if it looked in, and it was coming closer. Both Charlie and Carlton were silent and wide eyed as they listened to it edge closer until it was just on the other side of the wall. So close that it could reach around the corner and grab them. So close that she could smell it.

The smell coming from the basement had been Foxy, she realized. He smelled like pungent dirt and moldy, stale air. Inching closer and suffocating her until finally-.

"Guys? What's going on? Did you find something?"

Foxy's head snapped back with an audible crack at the sound of Marla's call. With only a second to process, the animatronic began to stalk across the basement, away from the security door. A few seconds later they could hear Marla scream. Charlie was barely able to hold Carlton back from running out while she carefully peeked out.

"Carlton, she's fine! She just saw him," Charlie whispered. This managed to calm him down but did little to comfort him.

"We've got to get the _hell_ out of here," Carlton hissed back. He peeked out behind her to see Foxy standing underneath the hole with its head craned up to look through. It kept moving and shifting its head around, so it either had extreme difficulty seeing her or she had hidden in the hallway. This didn't leave them in any better of a position. "We got to get him away from the ladder."

"We'll need a distraction," Charlie agreed. He was on the same wavelength, but then pointed at the tape player under her arm. She hesitated then said, "…A different distraction. We need the tape."

"Then take the tape out and put another one in. What's the big deal?"

The big deal was that she only had a limited time before sunset and it was direly important that she listened to this tape and figured out what was coming for them. That she couldn't waste time looking for another cassette player when she also had to repair a taser, talk with Clay, check on her brother, and be prepared to live another nightmare tonight.

This translated into: "The big deal is… Hold on a second."

The tape player could lure Foxy out, but it was clear that he was willing to follow any sound, and that he couldn't see well enough to differentiate where they were. The desk was right outside of the door with the second tape on it and a sizable space underneath. Which would've been a terrible hiding space in any other case, except that she was fairly sure Foxy couldn't see.

With a defeated sigh, she took the cassette tape out of the player and slipped it into her jacket pocket. She then hooked the taser onto one of her jeans' belt loops and handed the turned off flashlight to Carlton.

"Here's the plan: you and I sneak out and hide under the desk. Then we turn on the tape player and slide it into this room. When Foxy runs in, we sneak over to the ladder and climb out before he hears us," Charlie whispered. She knelt down into a crouch and looked around the corner again. Foxy was now walking in a circle under the hole, broken pieces of floor crunching under its feet. "Now's our chance!"

"I'm right behind you," Carlton affirmed. Charlie then slipped out of the doorway and crept around the corner to the desk. She grabbed the discarded tape before getting under the table closer to the door. Carlton quickly ducked in beside her without making a sound.

After slowly rewinding the tape with her fingertips- much too slowly for her or Carlton's liking- she put it into the cassette player. She took a deep breath, then clicked the play button and slid it into the room in the moments before her father's voice started to spill out. The moment it did though, Foxy's head snapped aside again and, identifying it as closer prey, it honed-in and staggered hastily towards the room. It didn't even look towards the desk.

As soon as Foxy crossed through the doorway, Charlie and Carlton raced to the ladder as quietly as possible. Charlie looked to Carlton and he waved for her to go first, watching the door closely as she began to climb the ladder. It clattered so loudly under her weight even though she was moving as evenly as possible. Marla leaned over the hole waiting to grab them.

Then, about halfway up, there was a loud cracking sound. It wasn't the ladder, but the tape player, if the sudden silence was any indication. Charlie stilled for a moment and looked up to where Marla was beckoning her. She began to slowly continue up, the ladder squeaking even quieter but still sounding so loud in her ears. She looked to the security door as she climbed and the world seemed to stop.

Foxy's flickering eyes stared out of the darkness of the once sealed room. Suddenly it didn't matter how well it could see, because she knew that it was looking straight at her. Charlie gasped and raced up the rest of the ladder, thinking that there would be enough time to get up and help Carlton up before it staggered over to them.

Except that this time, Foxy didn't shamble around like the other traps had. It suddenly broke into a sprint and ran at a speed that would've put the original Foxy to shame.

Carlton was barely able to run out of the way before it slammed into the ladder with such force that it broke through the bottom steps and ripped it out from underneath Charlie. She held onto the workshop floor for dear life, legs dangling, and Marla grabbing her and trying to pull her up. Carlton quickly backed up from the scene, thinking Foxy was about to set its sights on him.

But it didn't. It hefted its weight off of the broken ladder, creaked its head back, and affixed its attention on Charlie once more. It raised its cannon shaped arm towards the young woman.

"Pull up! _Pull up_!" Carlton yelled. It was too late.

Out of the cannon shot a bundle of netting and hooks that quickly swallowed Charlie and tangled into her hair and clothing. Foxy then gave a sharp yank, which both tightened the netting and ripped Charlie down from her precarious grasp on the garage, straight out of Marla's hands and to the ground. She got lucky, landing on her back and knocking all of the wind out of her lungs, but otherwise being uninjured.

Not that she had even a moment to process this when the net began to swiftly reel in and she was dragged to Foxy's feet. She looked up to see the harpoon raised and poised to strike.

Before Harpooner Foxy could skewer its prey, Carlton grabbed the harpoon and tried to wrench it away. He managed to get it aiming away from Charlie but not without slicing his palm in the process. It stung for a minute, but then Foxy turned its head, spread its jaws and revealed its long teeth, and suddenly that pain was miles away. He barely moved his hand apart on the harpoon in time to avoid the beast's bite.

While this was going on, Charlie struggled to get free of the binds. She forcibly untangled the hooks, pulling them out of her jacket and apart from the nets, clawing up her hands and arms in the process. The hooks pulled at her hair as she finally got a hole open wide enough to crawl through. In one swift motion, still weighed down by the matted mess, she unhooked the taser and turned it on.

Carlton was trying to duck behind Foxy in anticipation of the next bite. The beast, with its one-track mind, followed him, with its neck elongating and its head reaching over its swollen shoulder to reach him. This was Charlie's opening, and she rushed in and jammed the taser in the exposed section of endoskeleton past his vest and fur.

The moment the taser made contact it began to seize and shake in place, but Charlie noticed that it lasted much longer than when she used the taser from Afton Robotics. When it finally released the trap, who immediately slumped in place, she checked the taser and found the red light signaling it was too low on charge to use.

" _It used all its charge at once. That's what's wrong with it,"_ Charlie realized. Now that she knew this it might've been easier to fix it, not that she could think about that now. She hooked the taser again.

Carlton, who had been only lightly stung by the charge through the harpoon, was already looking for a way out. He pointed towards the stairs. "There's the stairs! Let's get out of here!"

"It won't work, they're blocked," Charlie said. She looked to the ladder- even if it was still usable, they wouldn't have time to put it up before Harpooner Foxy roused- and then spun around to search for anything else. That's when she noticed the hole the Butchers had used to escape. "There! We'll climb out the hole!" She could only hope it hadn't been filled in.

"Are you serious?!" Carlton exclaimed. He still ran after Charlie and watched with partial disbelief as she began to climb inside. It was wide enough for them to fit in easily one at a time.

Charlie could already see the sunlight once climbing in. The tunnel only went a few feet before steeply rising to the surface, with a wider area beneath the opening where there were two deep footprints. She could just imagine Foxy sitting here, crouched in the dirt, waiting for something.

Waiting for her to return to the house, she realized. If she would've returned to the house, he would've crept out while she was asleep and found her. She would've awoken with a harpoon through her belly.

Shaking off the thoughts, Charlie pressed on and began to crawl up the steep slope. The dirt was loose and barely cooperative. Carlton was right behind her and helped push her up the slope, but just as her fingers grabbed onto the edge, there came the familiar rapid footsteps of their pursuer. Carlton turned back in time to lurch back as Foxy lunged into the hole with his jaws bared. He kicked back his muzzle.

Apparently, Marla must've heard their plan, because she came running around the side of the house once Charlie was halfway out of the hole and pulled her up the rest of the way. Both then reached back in to help Carlton who was hastily trying to climb up. He was pulling himself out when Harpooner Foxy fired the net at his back. Just like Charlie he was snared, with Marla only able to pull it off of his head.

With a sharp yank, Carlton was pulled back over the edge and into the tunnel. The animatronic's flickering eyes glowed from the safety of darkness as it tried to drag him back in.

"Watch your legs!" Marla screamed. Carlton barely pulled his foot up before the harpoon stabbed into the dirt where it had once been. Frantic, she picked up clumps of dirt and threw them down at the creature, trying to distract it. Managing to nail it in the snout with a rock, which didn't do anything except maybe slow it slightly.

This was enough time for Carlton to reach into his pocket for his pocketknife which he unfolded with his teeth and then began to cut at the netting. Charlie was still holding him around the shoulders to keep him up as he slowly freed himself. Once he was down to only a few hooks, he was able to pull himself up more. Marla pulled off the remaining hooks as he made it out of the hole.

With him free, all three leapt to their feet in preparation to run, but to their surprise Harpooner Foxy did not follow them. Charlie cautiously stepped closer and leaned enough to peer inside, Marla clinging to her arm the whole time. At this angle she could barely see the animatronic lying in wait. It knew they were still out there, but it didn't follow them.

Just like the tape had said and as she had seen with the others, it couldn't come out into the daylight. Though this was little comfort when she knew now that they didn't necessarily deactivate during the day. All that kept them from coming for her right now was simple coding. What a terrifying thought.

"Let's get out of here," Carlton said. Nobody argued with him and they hurried around the house and to the cars without another word.

Charlie checked her pocket and was relieved to feel that her father's tape was still there. Maybe now they would finally get some answers. Or at least some warning for what was to come.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Put your finger in Foxy's hole.  
> Foxy's not at home.  
> Foxy's out at the back door,  
> picking at a bone.  
> -An actual nursery rhyme.


	11. Listen

Marla patched up Charlie and Carlton's wounds in the parking lot of the only electronics store in Hurricane. She insisted on it, even when Charlie deemed her wounds much less severe than his. Though she didn't put up much of a fight and allowed Marla to disinfect the more significant scratches and cover some with bandages. Carlton's had to be wrapped but didn't look like it needed stitches.

Charlie was sitting in the passenger's seat of Carlton's car while he sat in the back and was treated by Marla. The doors were open and let in a soft breeze that cooled her heated skin. The passing of cars, the sounds of distant voices; the ambience of the town was almost soothing now that silence was so terrifying.

"I'm sorry," she said. She said it despite knowing that it was a given, and regardless to not wanting to make this situation any more uncomfortable. What she didn't expect was the response.

"Why are you always apologizing?" Carlton asked bluntly. Charlie looked to him in surprise and Marla gave him a light disapproving look at his lack of tack. He continued without missing a beat, "You didn't drag me down there. I was the genius who thought it was a good idea, and then thought it was a good idea to grab a harpoon by the sharp part."

"I brought you over to the house and you got hurt because of it. I'd say that's worth a sorry for," Charlie said guiltily. "…I was afraid to go over there alone and I still couldn't take a hint."

"This? This is nothing." Carlton lifted his now wrapped hand and flashed it to her. "Stuff like this just happens in my line of work."

Charlie got a touch of a smile. "And what line of work is that?"

Carlton returned it in full. "Keeping you safe."

Charlie smiled a little more earnestly. Marla playfully nudged the redhead's arm before returning the medical supplies to the first aid kit. She stood up and dusted off her hands and skirt.

"Alright, let's head in," she announced. She dropped off the first aid kit into Charlie's car before they headed into the electronics store together.

The trip was successful but uneventful. They managed to find a cassette player able to play the tape and Charlie picked up a few things she thought would help in repairing the taser. Now that she had a better idea what the problem was, she had a better idea how to fix it. Though it was still more advanced than she had ever worked with. It wasn't going to be easy but it would be decent distraction.

Once they left the store, Carlton and Marla headed back to the house while Charlie went to get the food. Though instead of going straight through the drive-through, she parked outside and took out the tape player. Soon the batteries were in it and the tape was placed inside. She took a second to brace herself and then pressed the play button.

" _-with an audio lure to coax in potential prey. I'm afraid to say that this is a reoccurring feature in some of his older designs, but I digress. The third would be Bonnie, who has been built in the style of a glue trap."_

Henry continued on like this, saying things that Charlie already knew, but she still listened closely. It felt so weird hearing his voice again. She hadn't heard it since the recording that Sammy had played for her. That alone made her wonder how long ago these tapes were recorded. It couldn't have been before his faked death, so he must've returned to the house and somehow sealed everything up then.

She wondered where she was when it happened. Maybe she was still living with Jen, or maybe already in college while Henry was working diligently in that basement. She wasn't sure why it bothered her.

" _-which leads me to believe that Foxy might be designed to break into short sprints, perhaps as an homage to the older Foxy designs where he would run into party rooms. This may make him the most lethal hunter of them all… The final Butcher is different from the others. While it holds many similarities to the others in the set, its method… And target is different. It is labelled on its blueprints as The Conibear."_

This was it, exactly what she was listening for, a forewarning of what was to come. Charlie expected to hear the description of another violent beast scouring the streets of Hurricane, assuming this would be the unknown bear that accompanied Freddy on the first night.

Nothing could've braced her for what came next.

" _The Conibear is not made to trap humans. It is made to trap an animatronic known as The Puppet, one of his former victims…_ _ **He**_ _wouldn't even stop with those he already killed, he still wants to torture those who he has already taken everything from. This… Foul thing he created is a perfect representation of how far his madness has grown, how desperate he is to feed his sadistic desires._

… _The Conibear has a built-in tracking device that is synced up to The Puppet's security receiver frequency- FZ554. With this frequency it will be able to pinpoint its location exactly… And it will find him. Upon which it will incapacitate it and proceed to… Crush it inside of its chest… I can't bear the thought of that soul having to suffer at the hands of that monster any more than it already has._

_If everything goes according to plan, Sam- The Puppet will no longer be active by time the Conibear is at risk of finding him. I must make sure of this at all cost. As much as it disgusts me, there may be a way to reformat this technology for better use._

_The frequency was once used in tandem with security bracelets. There was a program with an earlier puppet model where if a child wearing a bracelet wandered too far, it would follow and retrieve them, and I believe this model was built the same. If I could use this to lure The Puppet and then contain him in a calm and sedated state-… I'm getting off track._

_To finish this up. These "Butchers" are highly dangerous. While they are primarily made to hunt for my family, they are capable of slaughters dozens to reach them. My earlier attempts to dismantle them while deactivated caused them to reactivate, so I am out of options for shutting them down myself. For now they will have to remain in this basement until another solution is found… That's all for now."_

The tape clicked off and left Charlie sitting there reeling. There was so much to process, but she couldn't but focus on the elephant in the room- or bear in this case.

His ramble about reformatting the technology made it all click into place. She had heard of something that worked like Conibear before, Lefty. Conibear was just William's version of Lefty.

Conibear was _the inspiration_ for Lefty. The similarities between couldn't be a coincidence- their father had been inspired by William's design to make a trap of a different kind.

She wasn't sure why this upset her so much, but it did. It made her angry to think he would've even considered using tactics William would've stooped to. Him expressing his disgust and fear did nothing to ease her mind either, and that wasn't the only thing angering her.

"He didn't do anything," she vented to her empty car. "He sealed those things down there, he left warnings about them, but he didn't _do_ anything. He just left them there and set up this plan to end it all without warning me. Did he really think I wasn't ever going to come back? This could've happened at any time, they could've found me the night the floor fell in! Dad, why couldn't you-?!"

She gave a frustrated cry through her teeth and dropped her head into a hand propped up on the steering wheel. "And now I have to tell Sammy about this. Thanks, Dad."

She sat there for a long moment and just let it all wash over her. Letting the anger run its course and then pass on with a steady exhale. There was no point in being frustrated in something that couldn't be change, or in her father's decisions when he wasn't even around to explain himself. He was trying to protect Sammy in the end, even if she didn't agree with the methods. She had to let it go.

"…What was that number?" Remembering the security frequency, Charlie got a notebook out and rewound the tape until she found the moment he rushed it out. "F-Z-5-5-4…" She wasn't sure what she would use the number for, if anything, but thought it would be important to remember.

Not wanting to sit there any longer, Charlie drove through and got the food. After everything that happened that morning, she didn't have much of an interest in eating, but she got herself a burger anyway. This turned out to be a good idea as having to smell the bag of food on the way home reignited that previously non-existent appetite.

She almost lost it again when she pulled up to the house only to notice Clay's car now outside. It was time to face the music. She decided to get it over with and headed straight inside.

Carlton, Clay, and Marla were standing in the living room in a deep discussion. That alone told her that Clay knew exactly what was going on, which she couldn't say she didn't expect. Carlton cut off his explanation- "Literally this close to my ankle!" -as he heard her shutting the door. All three of them looked to her, putting her on the spot.

"I'm glad you're back, Clay. There's something I need you to listen to. I'll be right back," Charlie said. She was impressed with how she managed to keep her cool. Normally something like all of this would've shaken her up enough to make her a mess, but she managed to keep it together. If she kept it up then maybe Clay would take her more seriously.

Charlie headed into the bedroom long enough to fish her burger out of the bag and pass the rest to a thankful Mike. Sammy was in the same position as when she left, so she didn't want to risk disturbing him by checking in any further. She left her food on the coffee table and guided Clay out to the car and into the passenger's seat.

She sat there silently and let him listen through the entirety of the tape up until the small pause before her father would begin talking about the Conibear. Clay was none the wiser. He had his hand on his chin and was deep in thought even after the tape ended.

"…What do you think?" Charlie asked. Clay breathed out through his nose.

"…I wish he would've come to me. We could've figured something out before all of this got out of hand. If this was the reason he-…" He caught himself with a short exhale. "But that's not important. The important part is dealing with this now. We had a press conference earlier where we issued a voluntary evacuation, but it's not going to do any good. People won't leave their homes if they have a choice and I couldn't give any more details without risking too much getting out."

"It might keep more people indoors," Charlie offered. He nodded with partial agreement. "…There was more that you didn't get to hear. I don't know if Carlton told you, but my dad left a warning tape on the desk to anyone who went down into the basement. He also mentioned a security frequency. Do you know what that is?"

"I have a general idea. We went through plenty of security equipment while investigating Freddy's… And Afton Robotics," he clarified. "What did he say about it?"

"He said they're following a specific frequency code. Here, I wrote it down." Charlie handed over her notebook, which was still opened to the same page showing the five-digit code. "I was thinking that if this is what they were following… Then maybe we could use it to our advantage."

He looked up from the notebook. "What are you thinking?"

"If we had the right equipment, we could simulate the frequency and lure the Butchers somewhere, then we could seal them away ourselves. We could even set our own traps and destroy them. He didn't say they were indestructible, just that he couldn't do it."

"They're not," Clay said. She gave him a confused look and he explained. "Last night we transported Chica to the police station and since then have been trying to get into its reinforced shell. Nothing would be built with that much protection if it didn't have a weakness it was hiding underneath. There's a way to destroy then, but we need more manpower and heavier equipment to pull it off."

As derogative as that sounded, Clay continued with a more interested tone. "But I like the way you think. This could be our ticket to getting them in a position to overpower them. The only problem is, what's to say they'll follow this frequency instead of you? We're already not sure how they've been tracking you this closely."

There was something weird in Clay's look. Not like he was questioning her, but like he already knew something and was trying to nudge it out of her. Charlie supposed that she could've just been paranoid but she had a hunch that he knew something he wasn't saying.

He still had a point. They couldn't be sure the animatronics would follow the frequency when they didn't know what she did. They might not also get the same amount of manpower watching over a radio than they had to guard a person. Perhaps she could leverage that to her advantage. She had to, the Butchers were getting too close and this was the only idea they had to stopping them.

Nobody else was going to get hurt. No more women who had the unlucky privilege of looking like her, no more cops, and not Sammy.

"We could use me as bait. I could take whatever we have to project the frequency and lead them right into a trap," Charlie said. Clay's eyes popped open in alarm. "…That might've not been the best wording."

"There's absolutely no way-."

"I already know how crazy it sounds, but Clay, I can't just sit here and not do anything," Charlie said. Frustration and pleading filled her voice. "You heard what he said, these bots are made to kill. The longer we let them wander around night after night, the higher chance we have of another innocent woman ending up dead. And it's not like I'm safe either. With how they're tearing through everything- eventually they're going to get inside."

Clay almost seemed dumbfounded by her words. He looked down at the notebook and was lost in thought again. Charlie turned forward and looked out at the sunny day outside the car window. It was only a matter of hours before the sun would go down; she needed all the time she could to work on the taser and prepare for what was coming.

"If something went wrong, you could be killed," Clay solemnly warned her. "We already have three bodies in the morgue. Are you doing to risk your life like that?"

"How's that any different than the last few nights?" Charlie asked tiredly. The comment seemed to hit him a little harder than she intended on it to. She pressed, "I want to do this. We have to stop them."

There was a long pause that hung in the air before finally-.

"I'll get my men together, find a location to set it up, and see if we can find a something that will work with this," Clay agreed, holding up the notebook. Though then his eyes flashed to her with dead seriousness. "But you won't get close to those creatures. You will not step in and try to fight them. If they get anywhere near you, you will run. To me, to another cruiser, anywhere. You. Will. Run. Do you understand me?"

"I understand," Charlie repeated. Not that she had any plans to take on any of the Butchers head on. That would be a death wish waiting to happen.

"I'm going to head back to the station and get this sorted out. You should go inside and eat, and get as much rest as you can before tonight," Clay told her.

She didn't argue with him and put the tape player in the backseat before getting out of her car. She noticed Clay didn't take the notebook with him, but assumed he had memorized the number. They headed back into the house in silence.

* * *

It was late in the afternoon when Sammy finally woke up. Charlie was in the dining room working on the tasers while her friends kept her company, unable to help but offering what support they could. She hadn't told them yet about the plan she and Clay had discussed, and she hadn't told Mike either. Clay had already left to get things arranged at the station.

Mike had moved into the living room to watch television, but found it wasn't much more entertaining than the book. He dipped into a newspaper briefly before setting it aside quickly when the front page was talking about the murders. At some point he got up to use the bathroom and afterwards he checked in on the puppet only to find him sitting up on the bed.

The overtly disgruntled look on Sammy's face, like he was generally fed up with everything, was enough to crack him up.

"You look _exactly_ how I feel. Hold on, I'll go get Charlie," he said. He stepped back out into the living room and called, "He's up!" Then headed back to the bedroom and dropped back into the armchair. He looked just as amused as when he left, even though the puppet had pulled his mask into a blankly tired expression, not even hiding how fluidly his mask shifted. "Feeling any less like the living dead?" Mike asked.

Sammy gave a wobbly little shrug with his smile returning. At least he seemed to get into a better mood, Mike preferred a happy puppet in the long run.

Then Charlie walked in. Both looked at her and it was clear as day that something was wrong. She looked like a deer in headlights standing in front of the closed door, but she gained an honest smile quickly.

"Hey, Sammy. How was your nap?" she asked.

He chimed in assurance though noticed something was wrong, so he held out his arms for a hug. He could only assume that it was something Clay had said. She gladly took him up on the offer, sitting on the bed beside him and returning the embrace.

"I'm so glad you got some sleep. I was really worried about you," she said. He chimed again, but as they drew back his eyes flickered downwards and noticed the bandages on her hands. He caught them with his and gently turned them over in his own. Charlie's smile grew strained. "It's nothing, I just… There's, uh…" She looked back towards Mike, who raised an eyebrow at her, and then back to Sammy.

His smile had returned to default. He was starting to notice something was up. She was going to have to tell him now and she hated it.

"…There's something I have to tell you, and I know it's going to upset you, but we're just going to figure this out together. So just keep that in mind," Charlie began. Sammy had a sinking feeling of dread and a frozen face. "I went back to the house today to look in the basement beneath the workshop. That scratching last night reminded me of scratching I heard the night of the storm, so Carlton, Marla and I went to check it out."

Sammy did not like where this story was going.

"Down there we found a room with a security door and some tapes left behind by Dad. Apparently these animatronics are called the Butchers, or Butcher Traps, and they were made by William to hunt us down, Mom too. Dad sealed them down there to keep them from getting out… but when the floor collapsed, it destroyed the backup generator and must've cut the power off to the room, letting the door open and letting them escape through the wall."

That smile was gone in a blink and replaced with a frown that might've been comical in any other situation. Charlie turned over her hands to hold his.

"Sammy… Do you know what a security frequency is?" An anxious ticking could be heard low in his chest as his internal music box began to tighten up. He nodded. "…One of the Butchers is called The Conibear and its been following your security frequency. That's how they've been tracking us."

Sammy flexed his fingers and stared down at the comforter beneath them. He was unsettled by the news, but Charlie noticed that he didn't look surprised. He must've known what this frequency was. His gaze refocused on her hands and he pointed at one of the bandages while looking up at her questioningly.

"We found Foxy," Charlie simply said.

"What?" Mike interrupted with rising dread. "Wait, you're saying he was out _during the day?_ "

"No, he was hiding out in the basement. I think waiting for us to come back. He wouldn't follow us out into the sunlight, so there's that," she explained. Mike's expression of hesitated alarm almost matched the one Sammy was wrestling with on his mask. She tried to assure him, "It's nothing. Carlton got it much worse than me and he's doing okay. We just got caught off-guard."

For a split second, a strange emotion suddenly took Sammy's face. It almost looked like frustration but that seemed too out of place, especially without any static. It disappeared after only a moment and was replaced with a much more familiar worry. He was only going to get more worried though, because she knew she had to tell him the rest.

"…There's something I have to tell you and I know it's going to upset you, but I've already made up my mind and there's no going back from that," Charlie said. She hoped that would keep him from trying to stop her, but the look on his face alone wasn't promising. "Clay and I came up with a plan to trap the Butchers and stop this once and for all. We're going to fake your frequency and lure them to a location where he and his men will take them out."

"Like that worked so well last night," Mike muttered.

"No, see, the problem last night was that they weren't prepared for this. They were just running around the house trying to keep them from getting in. Now we'll be at location planned in advance and they'll already know what works and what doesn't against them. This is the best chance we have to stop them. As I see it, it's worth taking the shot."

Mike stared for a long moment before daring to ask, "…Who's the 'we' in 'we'll'?"

"…Me. I'm going to go with them and help them draw in the Butchers. They're programmed to recognize and hunt me, so if they see me it might keep them from fleeing before the police can stop them."

Sammy gave a noise akin to a scratched record and grabbed her by the shoulder to turn her to face him. His face was twisted in shock and disbelief, and he shook his head vigorously. Charlie's face fell sadly.

"I know it's dangerous, but we have to try. We have a good chance of taking out at least some of the Butchers, and Clay's already made it clear that his main goal is to protect me, so I'm in good hands," she tried to rationalize. He began to shake his head even more quickly, pleading with static and garbling, a normally agitated noise. She took his hand in hers to assure him. "Sammy, I'm sorry."

But Sammy suddenly pulled it back. He raised off the bed and began to hover back and forth at the foot of the bed like he was pacing. His arms raised and fell, he was making a slew of discordant noises, and his mask- which she was having trouble seeing- looked absolutely devastated. She had never seen him so distraught. It actually hurt to watch it.

He wasn't the only one either. Mike was currently stewing in the corner before deciding to air his own grievances, challenging the plan directly.

"How are you in good hands if Clay's letting you be bait? No wonder his wife chewed him out- what cop thinks it's a good idea to use a young woman to trap violent, psychotic robots?" Getting more worked up, Mike also shot up from his chair. "Where is he? I want to hear this garbage plan from him so I can testify at his trial when he gets a bunch of people killed."

"Mike, calm down. He's not even here," Charlie tried to reason with him. It stopped him from storming out, but it did little to cool his mood. "And it was my idea. These 'psycho robots' want me and they're going to kill people just to get to me. We can use that to our advantage! You know as good as I do that just sitting around doing nothing isn't helping, not when they're getting bolder every night."

"But then _the police_ should be handling it on their own. They're the ones with the manpower and firepower, so why drag a civilian into it? Not to mention that after last night I'm not convinced they're capable of protecting anyone. They knew those things were coming and still got their asses handed to them by a chicken. Now they want to dangle you out there like a carrot on a stick? I don't think so." He ran his hand over his face and forced himself to calm down. "For God's sake, Charlie, why would you willingly agree to this? I know you know this is stupid."

"Because I'm not going to let anyone else get hurt when I'm the one they're looking for. It's worth risking my life to spare the lives of another three or four innocent women, and you, and Sammy," Charlie insisted. "I've made up my mind. I'm not going to let anyone else take the fall for me and I'm _not_ going to let them take Sammy, even if it kills me."

Mike could tell that she was serious. He rubbed his face again with a groan and only drew it away to try and rationalize with her again. Charlie was more than prepared to plead her case like she did with Clay.

She wasn't prepared for what she heard next.

"H-How… How could you…?"

Because that was _not_ Mike's voice.

The voice, as soft as a murmur of static, was coming from behind her. She slowly looked back.

"Sammy?"

The Puppet's mask held the same distraught, but now inky, purple tears were dripping down his face. His tightened hands were shaking as he stared at her. The voice spoke once again, coming clearly from him.

"…How could you _SAY_ that?!"

Suddenly his voice hit an unexpected crescendo with his dialing and static backing it, the Puppet standing tall over her. "Even if it _kills_ you?! How could you say such a thing?! How could you even _think_ such a thing?!"

"I… Sammy…" Charlie was totally taken off-guard. "Sammy, I don't mean that I'm going to let myself get killed-."

"But you would! I know you would because you almost did!" He pointed a dark finger towards her wounded hands as tears poured down his cheeks. His mask was torn between anger and despair as his voice skipped in silent sobs. "And you have before! You're always taking risks with your life!"

Charlie was positively dumbstruck by the unexpected outcry and watched as the Puppet began to pace again.

"Always trying to go alone, to make sure everyone else is safe, and then acting like you don't matter! Like you're- you're disposable!" Sammy scolded. His voice was beginning to skip from either lack of use or the force of his volume. "I-I'm tr-trying all I can to keep you sa-afe, but I can't prot-protect you if you don't l-l-let me!"

"Sammy, you're the one who would've gotten yourself hurt protecting me!" Charlie protested. "The first night we were attacked, you threw yourself on Freddy without even thinking of what could happen to you."

"Th-That's not the same-!"

"No, listen to me! That animatronic I was telling you about, the Conibear… _That's_ what Dad based Lefty off of. It's a more aggressive Lefty made to kill you!" This rendered Sammy speechless for a few moments. Charlie continued, "And as horrible as Lefty was, it was just made to trap you. This one is made to crush you. To destroy you completely."

There was a quiet pause to take this in before Sammy continued, his voice now much softer.

"I'm not afraid to die again. I'm not even sure if I can die again, but I know you can," Sammy said. His voice faded as his body trembled. "I… I _can't_ lose you again…"

It was those last words that hit Charlie the hardest. How many times had she said or thought the same thing about him? Even taking his feelings into consideration she had never imagined that he felt the same way towards her. He was the one who had been taken away from her, she was the one who was supposed to be afraid of losing him again.

Charlie stood from the bed and reached for his shoulders. He flinched slightly when she made contact so she didn't do anything more than hold him like that.

"Sammy…" she began. Her breath hitched and as soon as it did he was on her, arms wrapped tight around her, and his head resting atop of hers. She could feel his paint tears soaking into her hair but wasn't bothered by them. She hugged him back tightly, feeling him tremble and tick against her. It took her a few seconds before she tried again.

"I just want this over with. I'm tired of running, I'm tired of going to sleep not sure if I'm going to wake up tomorrow, and I'm tired… I'm tired," Charlie confessed. She didn't cry, but she felt miserable saying all of this. "…And I don't want to spend the rest of my life feeling like I was responsible for this. I don't want to be like Dad, I don't want to just stand aside and let more people get hurt."

"You're _nothing_ like him," Sammy said and squeezed her tighter. "And this isn't our fault."

"I know…" Charlie said. She inhaled deeply. "…But unless I do something, it'll always feel like it was."

The Puppet gave a somber pang and said nothing. She couldn't do much more than pet his back like it would somehow make them both feel better.

Yet as hopeless as the whole thing felt, something felt different now. She couldn't tell what it was, but her chest felt lighter. As though it was a physical relief to say those words and get them out of her head. It seemed like it had done something for Sammy too. He was still clinging to her, but he seemed to be crying less, and his trembling was starting to slow down. It felt almost a little better.

Then Mike cleared his throat and they remembered he was still standing there.

"So, I'm just going to go see if there's anything on TV. Give you two a minute," he excused. She had never heard him that flustered. In any other situation it might've been a little funny. He left the room quickly.

Almost as soon as the bedroom door shut, the static returned. Except it wasn't that angry, panicking static, but that pouting, generally annoyed kind. It was almost a relief to hear.

"Well, it took a week of this, but we finally scared him off," Charlie half-joked. Sammy's static cut off and he squeezed her a little tighter, calming down but still distressed. She started to wonder if he was just going to fall back into the muteness she was familiar with. She was a little surprised when he spoke again.

"I'm sorry… I shouldn't have raised my voice like that… I'm not angry at you, I swear," Sammy said remorsefully. "…I'm just afraid that you're going to get hurt and that there's nothing I can do to stop it."

"I know and it's okay. Sometimes you just have to let it out," Charlie said. She sighed. "But you were right. I know I take a lot of risks. It's not that I don't care about myself. I just would rather put myself in danger than anyone else, because then maybe I can do something to stop it." Sammy might've not liked it, but she knew he understood it.

She gently drew away and he let his arms drop to his sides and his head hang. The tears had stopped but the paint was smeared messily all over his lower mask. There really wasn't a way to clean it up on hand so she left it alone.

"But this is different. This could be the only way of stopping them once and for all, and if we're going to be honest, it's not like I'm not going to be in the same amount of danger if I don't go. Wherever we go, they're going to follow us. So why not use that to our advantage?"

"They're after my signal…" Sammy said quietly, his tone unreadable.

Guessing what he was thinking, Charlie defended, "You know it's more complicated than that. This is the best chance we have, so we have to take it." Sammy was silent. "Are you going to be okay?" Charlie asked.

"…Not yet." This confusion from this answer was clarified by a to-the-point, "Not until you tell me that I can come with you."

"We can't do that. Even if the bear doesn't see you, the cops might. I think Clay's already starting to suspect something. If he finds out that it's your frequency they're following, he's going to put two and two together."

"He won't see me. Have him bring in the radio decoy and he'll be none the wiser." Seeing Charlie's reluctance, Sammy now held her by the shoulders as she had to him and explained more clearly. "I know it's hard to believe, but I have seen much worse than this. Things of nightmares, wire monstrosities… The only reason I've been so afraid is because of that strange feeling whenever they got close. Now I know what it is and I can handle it. I'm not helpless, Charlie. Let me be there with you."

"…You won't throw yourself on the first thing that walks up? You promise me you'll hold yourself back?" Charlie asked.

"As much as I can, I promise," Sammy assured. "I'll be careful."

There was a small voice in the back of Charlie's head that told her to trust him and let him come, that they could figure this out together even if it was putting them both in a precarious situation. They had come this far together, it only seemed worth it to end it together. Charlie made her decision and nodded.

"Okay. We'll go together," she agreed. Sammy managed to regain his smile, regardless of what he had just signed himself up to do. "Now, let's go get cleaned up. We look like we've been shooting off paintballs in here." This got a chime out of him before she led him to the door and cautiously brought him into the hall.

Thankfully, unlike what she expected, nobody was standing outside the door listening in. Though she could hear some worried voices from out in the living room.

"-how they're going to do this. Foxy could just run up and just… We all know what he could do," that was Jessica. "What was wrong with just making a decoy?"

"Not enough tin foil and duct tape to wrap around the sock monkey," Carlton, of course.

After a short pause there came a determined, "We're going to think of a plan. There has to be a better way." There was John, always the optimist, blissfully unaware that the twins now had a plan of their own. Becoming restless, Sammy tugged Charlie's wrist gently and coaxed her the rest of the way into the bathroom.

Sammy's paint was easy to get off. So easy, in fact, that Charlie was half convinced that whatever the fluid was wasn't actually paint, but maybe some diluted ink made to be stainproof. Why anyone would build an animatronic with a crying function was beyond her, but seeing what else she had encountered she couldn't put anything past it.

Sammy was unafraid of getting his hands wet and quickly cleaned his mask before pat drying it with a folded towel, finishing up much faster than Charlie who was trying to comb out the fluid. She looked at him through the mirror and asked, "Better?"

He gave a positive chime in response. She couldn't say that she was surprised that he returned to silence, but she was almost a little disappointed that he had. After some deliberation, she decided to say something.

"It was nice hearing your voice," Charlie said. Sammy raised his head from the towel suddenly as though surprised. "Not trying to put you on the spot. I just wanted to let you know," she added with a smile.

He seemed to think on that before making a timid offer, "…I could talk more if you'd like. To you."

"Would you be okay with that?" Charlie asked. Sammy considered it again before nodding. She didn't ask him why he was so reluctant to speak, she just smiled encouragingly. "I'd love that."

She turned back to the mirror to finish sorting herself out when she got stuck looking at her reflection. She was still smiling. It felt like ages since she had last caught herself smiling.

… What if this was the last good moment they got to spend together? The last real moment that didn't involve fear and running for their lives?

Jessica had a point, in fact everyone had. The plan was shaky at best, and if Clay's men weren't ready, and she wasn't in a position to defend herself, she could be killed in a matter of seconds. Sammy being there would help, but she wondered if it would be enough. She had a bad feeling it might not be.

Funny, she had been a lot more optimistic before this all began.

* * *

It was starting to get dark by time Clay had returned to the house. By that point everyone in the house had worked out their own list of plans and strategies, but they all seemed to fall on the wayside once he came in. John stood alongside Charlie and held her hand for reassurance as they were briefed with the details.

"Taking into account the possibility of civilian casualties, we decided on a location outside of Hurricane. We've started setting up at the Campside Retreat," Clay explained. This was met with confused looks.

"The Campside Retreat? What's that?" Charlie asked. John leaned in a little and whispered.

"That dilapidated shack up towards Zion that used to be a motel," he said, sounding less than impressed. Though it seemed like he wasn't the only one questioning this.

"I know it doesn't sound very secure, but it would give us more room to work with. The land around the hotel is open enough to see anything approaching the building, and the second floor is accessible and intact, meaning that Charlie would be out of their immediate reach. The road from the highway to the retreat curves enough that we should be able to park there undetected. Not that the cars outside stopped them last night," Clay said bitterly. He shook his head and continued, "It's the best we have on such short notice."

"That sounds… Like it makes sense," Charlie agreed. She had much less confidence in this decision than she voiced. "And hey, if anything gets damaged, we don't have to pay for it. Win-win."

"If we could all be so lucky," Mike muttered under his breath from the couch.

"What about that radio we were talking about, did you find anything?"

"We might've found something worth taking a look at, but it's not in good shape," Clay said. His voice gave away his disappointment. "I knew we still had some of the security equipment from Freddy's put away in the evidence longer and found something that might've been a transceiver, but it looks like someone took a bat to it. If you can get it working then more power to you, but it looks like we'll need to forgo the frequency. Unless you have something else we can use."

"I guess we don't really need it if I'm there, but maybe I'll poke around at it. We have a little time before we have to go, right?" Charlie asked and Clay nodded. It was a shame too; a transceiver might've been perfect to make a decoy out of. Though now that Sammy was coming it wouldn't really be needed, but it could've still been useful.

John squeezed her hand and Charlie looked to him, catching his gaze before he looked to Clay. She knew what he was about to say, "Clay, we're coming too."

"That's out of the question," Clay shot down.

"Dad, look, we're not going to do anything stupid," Carlton said exasperated. "We're going to stay out of the way of what you're doing, we just want to be there."

"Carlton, you know why that isn't going to happen. Not only would I be putting all of your lives in danger- I took too much of a risk last night. I know you want to be involved, but I have to put my foot down," Clay insisted. His voice seemed to falter halfway through. Carlton averted his gaze, recognizing his mother's words repeated by his father. "But you don't need to worry. We'll keep her safe."

"How are you so sure?" John asked. There was an edge of challenge in his voice. "If you're this afraid for us, how are you going to protect Charlie when there's five animatronics going straight for her?"

"We need all of our attention and manpower on protecting Charlie and deactivating the bots. That is exactly why we're doing this outside of town. We can't afford to have anyone else getting involved."

Just because John didn't say anything more didn't mean that he was letting the matter drop. Charlie could see from his face along that his determination hadn't faltered. She admired that look, staring at him a little too intensely before catching herself and looking away. Nobody else seemed to notice.

"Except for me. I'm going," Mike said matter-of-factly. The older man gave him an exhausted look out of the corner of his eye. Mike shrugged and added, "I'm already this invested, I'm not missing out on the grand finale… Or the spectacular failure of the Hurricane police force. We'll see how it goes."

"Mike, what did I just say?" Clay asked. Not amused by the other's show of defiance.

"You just said I'm an adult who's not related to you, so I can do whatever I want and you can't do anything to stop me," Mike retorted.

"I could arrest you," Clay said with no threat to his tone, just that same weariness intensified.

"And I could sing like a canary." Mike gave him a wolfish grin. "Let's see you cover up this disaster as well as you did the last one at Freddy's."

"Fine, Mike. Fine. You want to come? _Fine_ ," Clay said, quickly losing his patience. "But know this, if you get in the way you will be putting both Charlie's and my men's lives in danger, along with your own. So, I hope you are taking this decision more seriously than you sound, because this has nothing to do with seeing this through and everything to do with protecting the lives of hundreds by putting down these machines. This isn't a game."

As confident as he had been earlier, that scolding caught Mike a little off guard and because of it he didn't give a clever retorted. Just a quick, "Got it," and nothing more. He suddenly found the coffee table much more interesting than looking anyone in the eyes.

The room was filled with uncomfortable tension and uneasy silence.

"…Since he's going, do we get to renegotiate this staying behind thing or-?" Carlton knew his mistake as soon as his father gave him _that_ look. He hadn't seen that look since he snuck out of school in third grade. He decided to let the matter drop immediately.

Clay stepped out to get the box and the group was left to sit in that disgruntled silence. Charlie herself was entirely unsurprised in Clay's decision. If anything, she was shocked he was letting Mike come, but he hadn't gotten out of his blackmail unscathed. Jessica, who had been silent the entire time, seemed especially upset, standing alongside Marla who had her arms crossed tightly and lips pressed tight.

Then there was John. As per usual, Charlie's gaze eventually returned to him and tried to read what he was thinking. That stoic look on his face hadn't changed.

"Well, that didn't go like we planned," Charlie said.

"No, it didn't," John agreed.

"So much for talking to Clay like reasonable adults."

"Worked like a charm."

"…"

"…"

"…You're still coming, aren't you?"

"Damn straight."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Conibear: A body-gripping trap designed to kill the trapped animal quickly.


	12. Butchered

John summed up the Campside Retreat well: a derelict building barely standing outside of the city of Hurricane. It might've been nice once, but the overgrown grass and the faded gravel path leading up to it suggested that it had been years since it received real maintenance, let alone visitors. Charlie watched it creep up from the passenger seat of Clay's car and felt her anxiety grow. She forcibly swallowed it down.

The road drove partially around the building and then past it and further off into the wilderness, probably leading to the supposed campsite nearby. Most of the police cars were parked around the last turn into the overgrown parking area, partially obscured by overgrowth and rocks that might've once been decorative. A surveillance van was parked a little closer to the building and Clay pulled up behind it.

Charlie started to unbuckle her seatbelt when a stun gun was offered to her by Clay. He had already offered her a radio before they left the house, so she wasn't surprised that he was trying to give her more. She reached down and unhook her fixed taser off of her jeans and showed it to him. "I'm good."

"This would give you distance. You should take it just in case," Clay continued to nudge.

"I didn't think I was supposed to face them head on," Charlie said with a quirked brow. His mouth twitched, but he didn't waver, and she gave in and took the stun gun. "I've never even shot a gun before."

"It's not that complicated. You just squeeze this and it deploys the barbs," Clay explained, pointing the trigger out to her. "Just be careful. There's no safety on this and reloading it will take longer than you have. If you get backed into a corner, fire the stun gun, and then run the second you get an opening to. Try to aim for the head."

"Exposed endoskeleton works too," Charlie said. Trying to remind him discreetly that she knew what she was doing, though she did appreciate his concern. "I think I've got it."

"You want this too?" Mike asked from the backseat. Charlie's arm was nudged by the end of a wooden handle. Even though she repaired both tasers- or she thought she did, as they hadn't tested them yet- Mike had decided to drive off before they left the house and came back with a newly bought axe. Clay's look expressed silent doubt and a lack of enthusiasm in Mike having the weapon.

"Thanks, but I think it'll just slow me down. You keep it and if something tries to rush the car, you just lean out the window and start swinging," Charlie lightly joked. He nodded and leaned back against the backseat as the two got out of the car and started walking across the gravel section of parking lot.

Charlie noticed a post jutting out of the ground and the sign it used to hold lying underneath it. Faded with age and growing lichen, the words were completely illegible. She could only hope that the wood holding up the building was in better condition as she raised her eyes to the abandoned building that would be her shelter.

Further back down the road, parked on the curve wrapping around the building and thus having a perfect shot across the scraggly field and of said building, was a car not intended to be there. Charlie's car, in fact, with John in the driver's seat and Jessica and Lamar in the passenger's seat and back respectively. Carlton had decided not to come due to his injury and his father's strict warning, and Marla stayed with him so they could wait it out together.

"There she is," Jessica alerted, even though the other two could clearly see the two people walking towards the front doors. John nodded and discreetly popped the trunk.

They could hear movement as something climbed out, but none of them looked back, just as Charlie had instructed. It fell silent again shortly after.

"I have a bad feeling about this," Jessica said. She shifted uncomfortably in her seat and dug her nails into her sleeve jacket, clearly nervous.

"Setting Sammy lose on the public or-?" John asked without taking his eyes off Clay and Charlie.

"This whole thing. How is she supposed to be safe in _there?_ And what good are the cops going to do if they're parked this far away?" Jessica sighed. "I don't know, I just feel like everything's going to go wrong."

"That's why we're here," John said determinedly.

"But what good are we anyway? All we have is a baseball bat and a tire iron- neither of which are going to do anything to these giant robots- and we're no better off getting to her in time if something goes south."

"Give the police a little more credit. If they went through with getting a surveillance van out here, which I'm guessing that's what that van over there is, then they probably have their bases covered," Lamar said. John and Jessica seemed much less confident but agreed with their silence.

Stepping into the building was like stepping into a stuffy attic. It smelled like it hadn't been ventilated in years even though Charlie knew the police must've been in and out over the last few hours. The evidence was mounted on the wall, she realized as she spotted a mounted security camera. It was clearly connected to the van outside.

Just seeing it took a bit of the edge off. They would be watching everything, she reminded herself, and aside from possibly seeing Sammy that was a good thing. She silently followed Clay to the stairs.

The stairs let out into a hallway that Clay barely stepped into before taking a sharp left and stepping into one of the bedrooms. The room was mostly devoid of furniture, save for a wooden bed with an old sheetless mattress, a dresser without any drawers, and a folding chair that must've been brought in to give her somewhere to sit.

"Double check that your radio's on," Clay instructed. Charlie knew it was, but did as suggested. Once satisfied with this, Clay began to explain further. "We've posted cameras both inside and outside the building, so we'll have an eye on the area. We have one in here too, so we'll be able to see you the entire time." He pointed to a camera above the door to assure her and she nodded.

"All I need you to do is stay in this room as long as you can. We're going to try and deal with the animatronics before they make it inside, but if they do then it's still possible that they might not be able to get up the stairs. If they do, we have a backup in the form of an audio lure we set up at the end of the hall. It will flash and make noise, drawing them in that direction. This should buy you enough time to either get out by the stairs or through the window, where we'll get you down by ladder. We'll do all we can to make sure it doesn't come to that."

"I'm not really confident in their ability to climb stairs," Charlie remarked. She eyed the camera momentarily before looking back to Clay. "Okay, I can handle it. Do I activate the audio lure?"

"It's remotely activated from the van, but if you start hearing them by the stairs, or in the room underneath you, radio me. We're can't be too sure of how many animatronics we'll see tonight. If we're lucky, only the bears and Bonnie. Then we can deal with Foxy at another time." Clay stood by the doorway and sighed deeply, seemingly reluctant to leave. "I should stay up here with you."

"You need to be out there making sure everything's going according to plan. Don't worry about me; it's just like you said, you're going to have an eye on me the entire time."

Clay nodded and finally went to leave the room. He turned back to her one more time before closing the door, a solemn look on his face.

"We're not going to let anything happen to you, Charlie. I swear my life on it," Clay said with full resoluteness. Then he pulled the door shut and left her alone in the dimly lit room. She could hear his footsteps creaking on the stairs shortly afterwards.

With a sigh of her own, Charlie reached into her pocket and pulled out Jessica's little keychain flashlight. A normal flashlight would've drawn too much attention to her, so she brought this one instead. It helped a little, as the room wasn't very dark. The police must've mounted lights somewhere nearby as there was a glow outside, but she couldn't see where from the angle of the window.

She looked at the chair sitting in the center of the room. It had been meticulously lined up underneath the sight of the camera, but that meant sitting it directly across from the door, directly in the view of whoever opened it next. It made her feel even more like an offering waiting to be served up.

Even though she had told Clay she didn't think they could manage stairs, she highly doubted that machines this advanced would be tripped up so easily. They could find a way up here, it was just a matter of if they could do it before the police could stop them.

Something touched her leg and she jumped away from it, only to recognize a familiar, black hand reaching out from under the bed. She gave a small huff.

"A little warning might've been nice." Sammy gave a playful chime and began to climb out the rest of the way, at which Charlie's eyes widened and she tried to stop him. "Wait, don't come out. There's a camera."

Sammy gave a dismissive wave and slid out completely. He then raised to full height and began to look around the meager room. He didn't look impressed, if his fading amusement was any indication.

"Well, it's not a bunker and it's not very safe… I forget, what was the point of coming here again?" Charlie sarcastically asked.

"No witnesses," Sammy cryptically returned. He then hummed thoughtfully and added, "But that audio lure may come in handy."

He didn't sound too concerned, but he could've been hiding it well. Charlie knew he masked his expressions so she wasn't surprised that he was doing so now too. His confidence, real or forced, made her feel slightly better about their chances.

"You don't feel anything yet?" she asked.

"Not yet. I'll tell you when I do," he said. "It may come suddenly. Maybe it won't this time, with us being up here."

"Do you think they can use the stairs?"

"Yes."

Suddenly that confidence wasn't nearly as assuring.

Meanwhile, Clay had made it back outside and was walking briskly to the surveillance van. His face was already grim, but it was too late to start doubting the plan. Just as he was opening the side doors, he noticed Mike staring at him from the backseat of his car. They made eye contact for a long moment before Clay looked back into the surveillance van, silently beckoning Mike before getting inside.

Much to his dismay, Mike saw the momentary gesture and was over to the van in seconds. He brought the axe with him and clutched it like it was his only lifeline. Clay shut the doors behind him.

The van was unimpressive on the inside, with only a single officer sitting in the back in front of two computer screens. He was flipping through the feed on one of them while the other showed static.

"Chief, we're having a problem with the camera in Ms. Emily's room," the officer said. Clay came to look over his shoulder and noticed the distortion, watching as the officer switched the other screen to the same room and showed the same static distortion. "It was fine when you were in there, but just after you left, we lost signal."

With a thoughtful hum, Clay got out his radio and switched to Charlie's frequency. "Charlie, are you there?" he asked.

After a second he received an answer. "I'm here. What's up?"

"We're getting some interference on the camera. Everything alright in there?"

Charlie furrowed her brows and looked to Sammy questioningly. He had almost a smug look on his face, one that confirmed that he was the one behind it.

"The camera looks fine from in here. Maybe there's a problem with the signal?" Charlie asked. "Are any of the other cameras out?"

"Just yours… Don't worry about it. We have a camera at the bottom of the stairs and at the end of the hall, so we have most of our bases covered. Just radio me if you start hearing anything nearby," Clay said. He let the matter drop, but Mike noticed a pensive look in his eyes. Whatever it was, the man didn't act on it and instead returned to looking at the screens.

Unsatisfied with the silence that fell on the van, and the direct lack of any explanation to why Clay caved and brought him in it, Mike tried to strike up the conversation again. "You know, this isn't too different from what I used to do at Freddy's: sitting around watching cameras until some metal Frankenstein starts shuffling onto the screen."

"That's part of the reason why you're in here. We could use the extra set of eyes," Clay said. At least that answered one question. He glanced momentarily in Mike's direction before asking, "Don't get defensive, but mind telling me why you were so determined to come out here with us?"

"I care about Charlie," Mike said without having to think about it. "I've been with her this whole time, I'm not leaving her now."

"How much do you care about Charlie?" Clay asked. Mike actually looked back at this and was met with a questioning look that confirmed exactly what he was asking him.

" _No_. It's not like that, so you can stop looking at me like that," Mike said, obviously embarrassed by the implication. He looked to the screens again. "Why are you always grilling me, Burke? You know I'm clean."

"I'm just trying to understand why you put up so much of a fight to get out here. Explain it to me, Mike. I want to understand." Mike did not like the tone Clay's voice took. He was used to the cross-examining and his wording that oozed doubt, but that faux-parental tone always caught him off guard. He didn't believe it for a second, so all it did was make him defensive.

"Has it ever occurred to you that I just don't care about the risk? I'm just here because I want to be," Mike snapped. "I know you're worried about a lawsuit, but don't be. I could disappear tomorrow and nobody would notice. Just let me do this."

That came out a lot more pathetic sounding that Mike had intended it to. So much so that he decided not to risk making eye contact with Clay and instead kept his eyes on the screens. Elsewise he might've noticed the concerned look on the older man's face. Clay decided to let the subject drop, and the third man in the room decided to quietly keep to his work.

For the next forty minutes things moved slowly. These minutes passed without anything happening on the screens, where everyone stayed where they were and waited for a sign of something coming.

Then there was a crackle over Clay's radio before a cop announced through it, "Chica's waking up."

Mike's head, crooked down to watch the screens as he leaned on the back of the officer's chair, snapped over to the police chief. "Chica's here?" he asked. The officer switched one of the screens to suddenly show an image of Chica's dome body sitting in the midst of a clearing behind the resort, illuminated under spotlights. Mike was startled by it. "Wait, you brought Chica out here? You already had her taken care of."

"Not taken care of, contained. We couldn't get through its shell to shut it down… So, we're going to lure it back out," Clay said. He raised the radio and spoke into it, "I have my eye on her. Wait until she's up before you engage."

Their eyes returned to the screen just as Songsnare Chica began to stir. It was subtle at first, with the plates blocking the arm holes slid open. The egg-shaped body seemed to shift and lean a little, which seemed to be because it was adjusting its footing, and then its neck hole began to open as well. Its legs slowly began to slide out as it raised itself off of the dirt. In one, smooth motion its arms and head snapped out.

The trap wobbled on its legs in an awkward gait as it tried to work out the tightness in its joints. Its glowing eyes stared dead ahead as it began to wander forward. Oddly, away from the building, as though it wasn't sure of where it was going. This wasn't necessarily a good thing as it meant it would be walking away from the cameras' view.

Clay gave one firm command into his radio: "She's up, move in."

That's all Mike needed to hear to draw his attention fully back to the screen, watching to see what they would do. It felt like watching footage of a car accident he knew was coming and couldn't look away from.

Chica wandered a little more before suddenly turning its head like it heard something. It turned towards the sound before beginning to back further away into the nearby tree line, tucking itself into the bushes. It looked rather obvious from this angle, but could've caught an unsuspecting person off-guard. It then opened up its chest cavity and shot out its snare about twelve feet away. It had already made a new loop out of the remaining wire, which was probably why the snare's length was meager compared to the night before.

After a few moments, Mike could see a lone cop walking out across the grass, directly towards the snare. It was clear from how straight he walked that he was purposefully going towards it. He was dressed in what looked like swat gear, and he was carrying something that was dragging a chain behind. He walked around the snare, testing the ground around it, trying to draw the attention of Chica.

Then he stepped on the edge of the snare and cautiously leaned down. It was then that Mike saw what it was that he had brought, a heavy metal hook, which he looped on the edge of the snare before dragging his foot boldly over it. The wire rapidly pulled and closed, not on his foot but on the hook, and it only drew in a few feet before the chain grew taunt and held it back.

All at once, a group of five or six more policemen rushed from the borders of the camera and closed in on Chica. Some of them were carrying heavy equipment, one in particular carrying a pair of mechanical shears that Mike could only assume was "the jaws of life", dragging an extension cord nearly as thick as the chains.

It was a complete night and day from their last encounter with Chica. It was subdued with a stun gun while the men came in, held its arms back, and swiftly sheered them off. Something that would've been particularly gruesome if it wasn't a lifeless killing machine that knew nothing beyond hunting prey. Having the snare pulled out kept it fully open for the men to begin looking and tinkering in its body.

Mike couldn't see much as his view was blocked by the cops themselves, but he had a hunch that it wasn't going so well. Chica roused enough to start fight- rather pathetically- and they had to shock her again. Eventually a voice came through Clay's radio, and from the scene on the screen it was hard to tell who it was calling it in.

"It's no good. We're not reaching anything that's going to shut her down. The head's pulled too far in to get the neck," whoever it was said. "Do we have a go-ahead on Option B?"

"Yes. Go ahead and do it," Clay said. He lowered his radio and watched the screen expectantly, watching as the cops shuffled.

While the others held Chica open, one of the cops carrying a bad of equipment knelt before her and began to work, reaching into the duffel bag he brought and the robot itself. Then, without much warning, he and the other men all drew back from the animatronic, with only one staying to tase it again before retreating. It didn't have a chance to recover, nor did Mike have a chance to question it before its insides suddenly detonated.

The explosion was contained entirely inside of that animatronic, but was strong enough to snap its snare, blow out the remains of its arms, and force out and cock its head at an uncanny angle. There was no delayed shutdown, Chica was immediately deactivated by the force, leaving nothing but a smoking husk behind.

Mike was stunned and snapped his head towards Clay. "So, _that's_ why you wanted us out in the middle of nowhere! Screw stun guns and axes, let's just blow the things up!" Clay gave a nod, but seemed more interested in watching the screen. A sly smile slowly spread across Mike's face. "There's no way this can be legal."

"We're skirting the law here, Mike, but considering the circumstances it's what has to be done. We already have three homicides on our hands, I'll be damned if I let them get another." Clay's voice was as dead serious as his expression and easily hid the concern beneath the surface. "But now we know they're on the move."

Mike silently agreed and looked to the screen again. In the grand scheme of things, defeating Chica was barely a victory. She was much slower than and not nearly as dangerous as the others, so this was just the beginning of a long night. Clay radioed Charlie to tell her the news before they settled back into silence.

It was over an hour before something changed yet again. By now Charlie had caved and sat in the chair, just had moved it behind the door so that if something came in, she would have a second to duck under the bed. Sammy sat on the bed with his legs crossed and his head resting in one hand. Both were somewhere between bored out of their mind and completely on the edge.

Until Sammy suddenly lifted his head and stared ahead with glowing eyes. His lowered his hand slowly as his pupils darting around. Charlie took notice immediately.

"Do you feel them?" she asked. He nodded stiffly, a fearful look settling on his mask. She got her radio up to her mouth in a heartbeat. "They're nearby. Just trust me on this, I know they're out there."

"We'll take a closer look. Hang tight," Clay responded. He stood up from the equipment box he was sitting on and looked at the screens. The officer had already begun to flip through them, but wasn't seeing much.

That was, until he got to a camera mounted around the back of the building, which had been overcome by static. Unlike the interference from the camera watching Charlie, this one was glitching out in a different way, and sometime flickered a glimpse of the space behind the house, though seriously distorted. Clay changed radio frequency to address the cops standing by.

"We're getting interference on the camera around the back of the building. Is anyone back there who has a clear view?" he called through. He received a quick answer.

"I'm close by. Let me see if I can get a look," one of the men said. Clay could hear his footsteps but couldn't see him on the screens. "I'm not hearing anything from… I see… Got clear visual…" His voice started to go in and out as a low static came from the speaker.

"Can you repeat that?" Clay asked. He was met with mostly static and a few blips of a voice.

"…on bear. Vis… back here…"

Clay exhaled tensely. "Can anyone hear me?" he asked into the radio, but the static that overtook the one cop's radio had overtaken the whole line. He could just hear bits of various voices through the static. Lines of communication were down. He turned his focus to the screen watching officer. "Wallace, go tell the men to check around back. It sounds like Freddy might be back there- and watch your step if he is."

The officer nodded, got up out of his chair, drew his own taser, and left the surveillance van. Clay now turned his attention on the remaining man, "Mike, get on the cameras and watch him."

"Sure thing, Chief," Mike said. It was supposed to sound sarcastic, but from his look alone he just seemed dumbstruck by the call to arms. He smoothly sat down and replicated what he saw the cop doing.

"Keep a close eye on Charlie's camera in case anything changes. If something gets upstairs, Shift L activates the audio lure. Don't use it unless you're sure something's up there or it _will_ lure something up there."

"Got it. Believe me, I know what I'm doing," Mike assured.

He set one screen to watch the still hazy camera and cycled through the other until he found the camera at the corner of the building, which had a good view of the wider area. They could see Wallace walk swiftly up to the side of the house, signal the other cops, and then start heading around the back.

Until he suddenly dropped into the ground.

Mike audibly choked as he watched the man drop waist deep into the ground, which seemed to collapse beneath him. All he could think about was Beartrap Freddy's gaping maw waiting for someone to drop into it. Except then two other officers came over to pull him out and he realized there wasn't an animatronic underneath, just ground that had caved in under his footsteps.

"Did you see that?!" he yelled back at Clay. As though Clay wasn't looking over his shoulder. Like him, Mike never took his eyes off the screen and that was how he noticed something. "Hold on…" It was hard to see from this angle, but it looked like the ground collapsed further in both ways. Almost like- "There's a tunnel under the ground... Oh for f- Freddy's already here! He's been crawling around under their feet!"

Clay had tried to prepare for anything and had known something like this could happen, considering that Freddy could bury itself. Yet just the sight of that collapsed tunnel and his composure started to slip.

"They're here! Circle the building and watch your feet!" he barked. The ominous static hummed through the speaker, and he swore impatiently before putting the radio away and slinging open the van door. "I have to get out there. Keep your eyes screen and don't leave the van."

"Wait a minute-!" But by time Mike turned around, Clay was out the door closing it behind him, cutting him off. "…Yeah, thanks!" Mike yelled after him. He rolled his eyes with exasperation and turned back to the screen just in time to catch a glimpse of movement through it. "Wait, what was that?" he muttered. He clicked through the cameras quickly.

It didn't take him long before he caught sight of it again. For only two seconds at most, he watched as an inhumane, hunched over form darted only feet from where Chica's remains lay and towards the building. He didn't get a good look at it, but he recognized the speed instantly.

Swearing loudly, Mike leapt from the chair and tore after Clay. He found him getting something out of his car and leaned out to yell to him. "Burke, Foxy's here too!" Clay yanked back out of the car with a shotgun in his hands and Mike's eyes popped open when it just skirted getting pointed at him.

"Which way did it go?" Clay asked. He had hoped Foxy wouldn't be part of what they had to deal with tonight, but he wasn't anything they couldn't handle. In fact, Clay was very prepared to go after this one himself.

"Take a guess," Mike replied, directing a hand back at the resort. "I haven't seen him coming around the front, so he's either somewhere on the side or heading around back."

"I'll handle it. Get back inside and watch Charlie. Don't come out unless you're cornered," Clay ordered before striding past. Mike didn't have to be told twice and shut the door before returning to the screens.

They both realized by now that the plan was on shaky ground- threatening to crumble just as easily as the ground collapsed under Wallace's feet- but Clay was willing to force it to stay together. Even if it meant walking straight into the midst of it.

And the midst of its breakdown was located behind the building, right in earshot of Charlie and Sammy.

It started with dull scratches from somewhere nearby, then a brief respite at the sound of men's voices, but that didn't last long. A snap and a yell called out and Charlie knew one of them had stepped in a bear trap, and it had all gone downhill from there. Heavy footsteps closed in, she could hear something splattering, and the voices of the cops as they desperately tried to salvage the situation.

Eventually it became too much to ignore, Charlie had to see what was going on. She pressed up against the wall beside the window to minimize the chance of being seen and peered down at the scene. It was rough to say the least. A group of policemen were grouped together and trying to fend off both Gluetrap Bonnie and Harpooneer Foxy, and this time neither of them were warded off by their numbers.

Bonnie raised its arm to spray them- again, if the tar splattered across their uniforms and the grass was any indication- when one of the cops boldly rushed in and swung out with a sledgehammer, knocking its arm downward. He then rammed it in the belly to try and knock it down, only to have its arm swing out and easily knock him to the ground. Foxy tried to rush in, but the rest of the men were quick to rush in and block him, one firing off the stun gun and getting a dart into his shoulder. Foxy yanked himself back in a stumble, ripping it right back out.

It didn't look good, but it was better than she expected. Charlie had a deep-set fear that the cops would've been easily overpowered, but they seemed to be holding themselves well. Though there wasn't any sign of Beartrap Freddy even though she knew he was nearby. She could even see the trap itself laying on the ground, broken and cut from its chain, but no sign of the bear.

She could hear the scratching coming from beneath her though and looked under the window.

There was a plastic face with a disgusting smile only a few feet beneath her. It was so jarring that she threw herself away from the window and backed a few steps away. That had to be the Conibear.

…But there was nothing she could do. Charlie had agreed to stay here; if she left it could throw a wrench into the works for Clay and his men. They might've not had the upper hand, but they were holding their own, and having the animatronics suddenly go berserk seeing her would not help that. As much as she wanted to do more, she didn't and continued to wait with Sammy.

Things continued happening outside. She couldn't see but the sounds coming through the wall painted a clear picture. The dull pop of Foxy's arm cannon and the resulting scramble to get the netting off. A loud clatter against the wall and a yelp- she imagined someone getting rammed into the wall by Foxy- and a cracking thunk of what could've been the sledgehammer on the bot's skull.

There came a loud bang that sounded distinctly like a gun going off. Both Charlie and Sammy flinched from it, then listened as they could hear Clay yell: "Don't touch it until it drains out!" Clay being there almost made Charlie feel a little safer, but she could tell that Sammy didn't share the sentiment. He was still crouched on the bed as though prepared to spring at any moment. She patted his back comfortingly.

A crash from downstairs stood out amongst the other noises. It was definitely a window shattering in the room beneath them, and there was only one bot she had seen sidled up to a window. Her and Sammy looked at each other and listened together, hearing the telltale heavy footsteps that were crossing the creaking floor and approaching the stairs.

Charlie hastily jumped up and wedged the plastic chair under the doorhandle. She quickly unhooked and turned on her radio before whispering into it, "Clay, one of them got inside."

She was answered by static and distorted voices. Trying to stay calm, she tried again, "Clay? Can you hear me? Anybody?!" It was no good, nothing was getting through. She looked to Sammy thinking that this was also him, but he could only shrug with panic showing on his mask.

The footsteps started to creak up the stairs. Whatever it was being so heavy that it sounded like one of the steps might've cracked and broken beneath it. Running out of options, Charlie ran back to the window and fought with the lock. She struggled with it before managing to pry it from its stuck position and lifting the stiff window up a few inches.

"Clay!" she yelled through. He was standing over the twitching body of a broken Bonnie when he heard and turned towards her. "Clay, the bear got in! It's outside the door!"

Charlie seldom saw Clay look as startled as he did in that moment. He didn't waste any time though, calling back to his men before running down the length of the house.

Unfortunately, it didn't seem like it would be fast enough. The footsteps had settled outside the door and as Charlie turned from the window, she could hear a tap, tap, _bang_ as the bear struck the door with its clawed hand. Sammy crawled to her side of the bed and pointed under it. She dropped down and crawled underneath, with Sammy following her a second later.

The bear was more aggressive tonight. She didn't know if it was because it had seen her or because it was somehow aware that two of the other bots had been deactivated, but it didn't plan around trying to lure the Puppet out with soft scratching. It must've thrown its whole body against the door from the thunderous noise. It was enough to break the upper hinges and cause the door to lean in.

A second blow broke the door down as the chair fell and was shoved aside by its weight. Now Charlie could see the large feet as the beast stepped into the room, the door cracking and breaking underneath them. Any fabric had been worn away to reveal the endoskeleton beneath, just like many of the others. Though the size difference was obvious.

Sammy was trying his hardest not to make any audible ticking noise from his anxiousness. This translated into trembling as he stayed tight to Charlie's side. He only took his eyes of the bears' leg when he noticed his sister reached for her taser- the one she had fixed, not the stun gun. The Fazbear Entertainment grade taser that would deal a much harsher blow, though wasn't guaranteed a second.

She pulled her hand in front of her and he reached for it, lying his hand on hers and then gently pushing it back. She looked to him questioningly; he looked from under the bed. The bear's feet were now facing towards them and he could hear the squeaking as it started to lean over. Clawed fingers slowly slid under the edge of the bed frame, clutched onto it, and began to slowly lift the bed up.

Charlie blinked and suddenly Sammy was gone. Her breath hitched and she expected to hear a fight break out, but it didn't. The only thing that happened was that the bear's hand suddenly stopped, holding the bed frame up only a few inches. It must've felt him leave and was tracking where he was. Charlie held the taser tighter and braced herself.

But Sammy hadn't gone far. He had only teleported as far as the hallway before hastily rushing to the end to search for the audio lure. It didn't take long to find it: it was just inside the door at the end of the hall, what looked to be little more than a stereo with a strobe light mounted to its top. He struggled to try and figure out how to turn it on.

He didn't have to struggle long though, because the moment the Puppet left the bedroom the camera static lightened up and began to glitch out like it had behind the house. All it took was a few seconds before Mike caught a brief frame of the massive creature standing in the bedroom. He couldn't even see what it was doing, he just swore again loudly and turned on the audio lure.

The sound of sirens blared from the lure as the light on top began to flash and spin. The noise alone was enough to snap the animatronic out of its processing, cause it to drop the bed, and wander to the door and out into the hall. Charlie waited until its sluggish footsteps were halfway down before she scrambled out from under the bed and made a run for it.

She hesitated at the top of the stairs, wondering if she needed to go after Sammy. She quickly remembered that he could easily teleport back out and turned to run into the stairwell just in time to run into Clay.

He was relieved to see that she was alright, but was soon looking into the hallway past her. "Where is it?" he asked.

"Down the hall. It was following the noise." He started to pass by her when she grabbed his arm to stop him. "Wait. You're not going to be able to take it out with just a gun. It's bigger and stronger than any of the others," Charlie half-pleaded with him. More cops were coming up the stairwell behind her and Clay acknowledged them momentarily before addressing her.

"This is our best chance. We need to take it out while it's still cornered. Wait downstairs for us," he instructed. She wasn't sure if she agreed with his stubbornness, but she nodded and headed down the steps, keeping against the wall to let the rest of the men by.

Charlie didn't feel any safer being downstairs. Not only could she now see the window that had been broken in, but the front doors were open, making the entire room feel open. She could hear footsteps coming from upstairs, then some bumping and thumping, a loud bang that didn't sound like a gunshot, all melded together with the continued noise of the lure.

Then there came an especially loud series of noises. Banging and scuffling, heavy footsteps that were so forceful that the cobwebs on the exposed rafters were trembling, and a loud cracking and scraping on one of the walls. Clay was barking orders before suddenly getting cut off, which was followed by a loud thump.

Now Charlie was starting to become concerned. She stayed planted at the bottom of the steps with the stun gun grasped tightly in her hand and waited for a clawed hand to reach around the corner.

Before that could happen, she heard a squeaking from the direction of the broken window. The sound of wet metal joints rubbing together. Charlie turned her head only to see a familiar face staring at her through the window, Foxy. His mouth hanging open like it was broken and revealing the rows of teeth inside.

She only had a single thought: _"Run!"_

Charlie made a run for the front door and sprinted out and across the parking lot. She got about halfway across when she noticed a pair of headlights flashing off in a different direction from Clay's car and the van. She recognized that it was her car and began to run in that direction.

She reached the grass and kept running as John stepped out of the driver's side door. Jessica popped out from the other side before suddenly clasping her hands over her mouth in horror. John suddenly broke into a run towards her as Jessica peeled back her hands to scream at the top of her lungs.

" _Charlie, run, run! It's behind you!"_

Charlie heard the footsteps as Harpooneer Foxy charged out from the inn and quickly caught up with her. In the last second, she ran to the side as a last-ditch effort to lose the bot, but it was no good. Its weight crashed into her and threw her onto the rough dirt. Foxy's feet were planted on either side of her as it leaned in close and aimed its harpoon for her spine.

When Sammy suddenly threw himself onto Foxy and wrapped his arms around his head. He yanked it back, legs pressed into the beast's hunch, and his strings quickly interlaced before he twisted the beast's head further to the side. Foxy was thrown off-balance and staggered back, almost stepping on Charlie in the process. She pushed up from the ground to find John's hand waiting for her to take it.

He helped her to her feet before pushing her behind him and standing with bat poised. He was ready to take on Harpooneer Foxy himself, but could only watch in shock as the striped creature continued to puppeteer Foxy into stumbling around in the grass, all while playing chaotic nursery rhyme music. Charlie yanked up the stun gun and prepared for an opening to subdue Foxy. She didn't even have a chance.

The Puppet continued to build up the tension in his body and strings before suddenly- on the 'pop'- he straightened himself up and ripped the bot's head free from the endoskeleton and much of its wiring. Alas, it made more of a sizzling crunch that the satisfying 'pop' that might've punctuate the music, which died the moment Foxy did.

Harpooneer Foxy's headless body staggered momentarily before collapsing into a heap. It looked like little more than a pile of scrap with the Puppet hovering above it, who dropped the head uselessly to the ground.

Sammy was slow to raise his head. He could feel all of their eyes and had to fight against the programming telling him to either lock up or flee. He refused to do either and faced Charlie's friends head on. His eyes darted to each of them one at a time; John with his tightened jaw, Jessica's hand back on her mouth, and Lamar holding something that looked suspiciously like a camera- not that Sammy was concerned.

He was much more worried about Charlie's reaction. He felt like he had broken his promise to her, even if they had agreed to him intervening if things got too dangerous. Foxy was very prepared to stab her through, he knew she was going to understand why he did this, but he also feared her disappointment. He looked to her face last and saw the fear on her face.

He felt a sinking feeling as he realized that she was looking past him. He slowly turned around to look back at the building and saw what it was that she was afraid of.

It almost took up the entire doorway from its girth alone, having to bend down just to fit through. Its fabric was a moldy mustard color that struck Sammy with an uneasy feeling of familiarity. Instead of a trap, it seemed to be shaped much more like an oversized teddy bear. Its overfilled body oozing dirty cotton out of the tears in its plush suit.

He finally got a good look at both of its hands. One had the long claws that he recognized tapping on the windows- all the better to clip his strings. The other had a strange tool replacing the hand. It looked like a normal hammer than had been grafted to a spring mechanism where the wrist would've been. That was what it must've used to break through the windows so easily- perfect for shattering porcelain.

Once it stood upright, they could see its belly. The yellowed fabric was broken up by a large, red cross pattern across its chest and down its stomach. An oversized, red ribbon was tied like a bowtie, but was stained and frayed at the edges. Both of these together almost gave it the look of a wrapped present- save the ominous dark crease down the center of its stomach.

But nothing could prepare Sammy and Charlie for the chills that would come when the bear snapped itself upright and revealed its face, even when the latter had caught a glimpse of it.

Its face was comprised of a rubber mask that had been sewn into the fabric. White eyes were painted on the mask with holes poked through the pupils to let the endoskeleton optics underneath see out. It had a typical square-shaped nose with some of its coloring worn away to reveal a tan color underneath. There was a cheap-looking wrinkle across the left side of its face.

The smile was absolutely revolting. It was stretched down its face like the rubber itself had melted and was painted entirely black. No teeth, no real mouth, just a large, off-triangle shaped deformation sitting underneath two round and rosy cheeks. Its face was a disgusting reflection of Sammy's own.

This was the Conibear, and the moment its eyes met Sammy it focused with an intensity unlike any he had felt being watched before. Its neck even slid further out as it fixated on its prey. The pulsing in his head became stronger than ever, like a pounding heartbeat. He found himself petrified even though every part of him was screaming to escape from its sight.

Charlie had a bad feeling that she knew what was coming. "Sammy, get in the car," she said firmly. Yet he didn't move, seemingly stuck on the spot. "Sammy, you have to get away from it! _Now_!"

What came immediately after this was not what anyone expected. Especially not Charlie, who had seen the methods of the others and expected it to charge them. That was not what it did. What it did was far worse.

Suddenly crackling music began to play from a half-obscured speaker under its bow, and with it the animatronic began to sway its head left and right in a bouncy, mock-playful motion, one that didn't match the music box tune very much. It moved more like a giddy child happy to see a new toy to play with. Then in a split second, it stuck its arms out in front of it and tilted its head. Almost like it was asking for a hug.

Sammy turned and rushed towards Charlie and John at the same second that the Conibear broke into a toddling gait.

John didn't need anything more to get the signal. He grabbed Charlie's hand and began to make a mad dash back towards the car. Knowing Sammy was close behind, she ran with John back towards the car.

Except for one problem, Sammy was not following close at all. He did for only a few seconds before his body started to falter. Gravity suddenly grew heavier until it ripped him out of the air and dropped him onto unsteady legs. He only managed through a few awkward steps before collapsing to the ground. He fought the programming trying to forcibly shut him down and began to crawl.

Everything seemed so blurred and far away now. He couldn't even call out to Charlie because so much of his control was snatched away. He couldn't feel his legs anymore, just his arms, and he used those to continue crawling across the grass. He could hear the Conibear's heavy steps creeping up behind him. The closer it got, the harder it was to hold on to that last bit of consciousness.

Charlie and John had almost gotten to the car when Jessica gave a startled cry and started to frantically point past them. "You have to go back for Sammy! It's about to get him!" she cried.

Charlie felt her heart drop and turned back just in time to see Sammy reduced to crawling. There was momentary shock before it all clicked together: Mike said a music box was used to subdue Sammy, and the Conibear hadn't began playing music until it saw him.

" _Oh God, no!"_ she thought. Without any explanation, she broke from John's hold, grabbing his bat in the process, and ran as fast as she could back towards her brother.

Sammy could see her coming and tried desperately to regain enough control to push forward, but willpower alone wouldn't overtake programming, and the music box was now directly behind him. He didn't look back, not even when he heard an enormous **clank** right over his head and felt warm air wafting out over him.

The bear's belly opened up to reveal a gaping pit of crude spikes with two distinct metal walls made to close and crush anything unfortunate enough to be trapped inside. It was like some disturbed corruption between an iron maiden and a trash compactor. It was an animatronic torture device, and Charlie had a clear view straight into it.

Sammy reached for her one last time before collapsing and going still. Seemingly waiting for this, the Conibear reached and grabbed him by the other arm, lifting him like a ragdoll and dragging him to its belly.

Charlie knew she only had one shot. She stepped aside to get a clear view before firing the stun gun deep into the depths of the trap. The darts clattered against the metal spine behind the crushing mechanism and got caught the strands of worn wiring netting underneath, where she delivered the full brunt of the taser's power.

The Conibear jolted upright and seized, its grip weakening enough that Sammy slipped through its claws and collapsed to the grass again. Charlie continued to hold it at bay until the gun ran out of charge, upon which she threw it aside and switched to the bat. With it still stunned, she began to beat the Conibear with all she had; knocking aside its arm and then aiming for the speaker hidden under its bow.

"He's not yours!" she yelled as she smashed the flimsy speaker in.

"You can't have him!" Now she switched targets and aimed for its head. One swing was enough to cause that ugly wrinkle to tear open.

"I'm not afraid of you, not anymore! You're nothing! Nothing but Afton's- DISGUSTING- WORTHLESS- MONSTER!" She punctuated each word with a savage blow until its rubber mask was partially caved in.

The only reason she stopped in her assault on the bot was because it suddenly shook its head and neck, like it was literally shaking off the shock and ready to pursue again. Charlie reigned herself in and turned to make a grab for Sammy. The Conibear reached after her only to be blindsided by a tire iron knocking its arm back, curtesy of Lamar.

John and Jessica had arrived as well and while Lamar tried to distract the Conibear, John took back his bat to shield the two women as they gathered up Sammy. He was more awkward than heavy and each wrapped an arm around their shoulders to carry him back to the car.

The Conibear recovered smoothly, pinwheeling its arm and hitting Lamar from directly above, knocking him flat to the ground. It never took its eyes off of the Puppet and began to bound after them. Lamar was barely able to scramble aside before he could be crushed under its foot. John got between the bear and the others as Charlie unhooked her taser and Jessica watched in horror-

-when someone stepped from behind the bear and with one swing of their weapon severed the hammer mechanism from the end of the Conibear's arm.

It was Mike, with his axe gripped tightly in his hands and vengeance in his eyes. Unlike Lamar's efforts, the amputation of its arm caught the attention of the Conibear. It raised its limb and studied it with a high-pitched crackling from its speaker, then began to turn and face the man who had done so to it. Mike sized it up with a tight jaw before yelling to the others.

"Take Sammy and run! I've got it covered!" he lied through his teeth. Charlie didn't have a choice but to do as he said, knowing it was too much for him but having to get Sammy to safety. She and Jessica carried him to the car with John at their heels. Surprisingly, Lamar was the one to hesitate, looking like he was considering staying to fight. Mike called to him, "Don't be a hero, Kid! Get the hell-!"

He was cut off rather abruptly by the Conibear swiping at him. He managed to duck forward just in time, only to have it jut its belly forward and try to snap closed on him. Mike barely dodged this and took a wide swing towards the other arm. The axe tore through the fabric but only clipped the endoskeleton underneath. The Conibear whacked him over the back with its stump and caused him to stagger forward, then stabbed towards him with its claws bared.

Mike got lucky and angled his axe upwards to catch its hand between the fingers. Unfortunately, the Conibear was two steps ahead of him. Its claws suddenly closed tight on the axe head before it rotated its wrist, twisting it forcefully out of Mike's grasp. Even though he recovered just as fast, getting the axe back in grip, its hand suddenly shot forward toward his abdomen. He stepped back just in time to dodge being gutted.

The claws sliced through his clothes and scratched across his skin, leaving superficial but stinging wounds. Not that Mike would notice when it bunched his clothes in its grasp and lifted him clean off the ground with no struggle. Its head turned and it looked back towards the hotel momentarily, eyes flashing through its mask, and Mike took this moment to raise his axe and prepared to slice through the second arm.

Until he was suddenly lurched forward and then thrown back across the grass. It was at least a clean twelve feet before he landed painfully on his back, dropping the axe at his side. He had only a second to recover before the ground started to shift underneath him. Adrenaline forced him to his feet as he tried to scramble back, but the dirt continued to collapse beneath him, and this time it wasn't just an empty trench underneath.

A large head began to unbury itself from beneath him. A familiar face with razor sharp teeth and beady eyes twisted and wriggled its body as it followed his heels. Its mouth opened wide to reveal a plunging hole of metal and darkness inside of its gullet just beyond those rusty teeth.

"No, no, no! Freddy- _Freddy!_ " Mike yelled in panic. He barely grabbed his axe before it could slide down beside Beartrap Freddy's jaws and then whacked him over the head with the back of it. It did nothing to stop it and he continued to crawl backwards, fighting the collapsing dirt, as he tried to free his taser.

The second Mike got it free, Freddy tried to bite down on his shoe and he just barely pulled his leg back in time. Then he leaned forward and stabbed the taser at its lower jaw. It opened its mouth wider at the last moment and he missed, and barely yanked back his hand before the teeth snapped down. He quickly jabbed it in the lower jaw and sent a shock through its body.

Apparently, Charlie fixed the taser a little too well as Beartrap Freddy seized so aggressively that head snapped back and its jaw chattered. Mike continued to release the charge until the taser started to burn his hand and smell distinctly like melting plastic. Throwing it aside and not giving Freddy a moment of rest, he swung his axe down into the bear's head. It took three swings to break into Freddy's endoskeleton.

Before Mike could deliver the fourth, he suddenly found himself being pulled free of the dirt from behind. He looked over his shoulder to see Clay looking a little worse for wear with a bleeding nose and a busted lip. The man pushed him aside before picking back up his shotgun and forcing it into Freddy's chattering mouth, aiming it upwards towards its head.

With one loud bang, Beartrap Freddy's reign of terror came to a sudden end. It was still twitching in the dirt as the lights in its eyes died.

Clay turned to Mike. "Are you alright?" he asked.

"Yeah, I'll live… I'll be a lot better if you drop a bomb in this one two," Mike said. It was clear from his voice that he was a little shaken by it.

Clay offered his hand and helped him too his feet before turning and running towards a scene occurring across the parking lot, barking into his radio for his men to secure Beartrap Freddy and, once he ran past it, Harpooner Foxy. Without any hesitation, Mike followed behind him.

Charlie and her friends had gotten to the car only moments before what transpired with Beartrap Freddy. Including Lamar who had run as soon as he saw Mike thrown, assuming he was safer wherever he was landing and that he himself would be the Conibear's next target.

Charlie laid Sammy in the back seat and checked his mask. There was a flickering glow to his eyes, but they didn't seem like they were focusing on anything.

"Sammy? Can you hear me?" Charlie asked. There was no response. She snapped her fingers a few times to no avail and frowned worriedly down at him.

"Is he going to be okay? Has this ever happened before?" Jessica asked. She had gotten in the passenger's seat but was leaning between the seats to see what was happening. Her lips were tight in a worried pout.

"No, but I think I know what it is. It looks like he's coming to a little," Charlie assured. She was about to try rousing him again when she heard John swear under his breath and looked up through the windshield to see the Conibear closing in a lot faster than she expected. Her breath hitched seeing it so close.

After everything they had gone through, after how much they had all fought it, it still moved like there had been no damage done to it. With the cops still hung up around the resort, it would walk right out of the stake out site and follow them wherever they would go. It was always going to be following Sammy and waiting for a moment where it could take him away.

Frankly, Charlie had enough.

"Everyone, brace yourselves! This is going to be a rough road to drive out of backwards," John called. He dropped his hand onto the shift to throw it into reverse, only to suddenly have Charlie's hand stop his. He looked back to see her now leaning between the seats and staring at the bear. She had an unreadable expression on her face.

Then she took a small breath and said, "John, let's switch. I'll drive, you help them get Sammy out of the car and to safety."

"Whoa, wait. What are you going to do?" John asked uneasily.

"I'm thinking about wrecking my car," she said, still staring at the Conibear. He glanced between her and where she was looking and put the pieces together quickly, but it too him a long pause before he spoke again.

"No," he said. "…By which I mean, no, I'm not getting out of the car. Jess, Lamar, you two get Sammy and head towards the highway." Jessica popped out of the passenger's side and shut the door while John met eyes with Charlie again. "Wouldn't be the first car I wrecked," he said with a teasing smile. Regardless of Charlie's concern, she couldn't help but smile.

Though that smile dropped the second that Jessica got into the backseat, sliding in beside the equally alarmed Lamar. "Jess, what are you doing? You don't want to be in here when we do this."

"If it's safe enough for you, then I'm staying. I didn't come this far to bail out," Jessica said. She then looked to Lamar questioningly. He seemed torn for a moment before turning to the others.

"You all are my best friends and I'd go out on a ledge for any of you. We've seen some crazy stuff together and we survived it sticking together. I'd do anything for any of you guys," he said solemnly. He paused a long moment before adding, "…But if you guys don't mind, I think I'm going to get out now."

Jessica got an unenthused look and moved aside as Lamar squeezed past her and got out of the car. Then she slid into his seat fully and put on the seatbelt, muttering a soft, "Wuss." Charlie was about to tell her to stop Lamar so he could take Sammy with him, but didn't get a chance.

"Whatever we're going to do we have to do it now," John suddenly interrupted. Both woman looked forward to see the Conibear climbing the short slope towards the car and knew they ran out of time.

Charlie buckled her own seatbelt, pulled Sammy's upper half across her lap, and braced herself on the back of the driver's seat. Then she gave a firm and decisive, "Floor it!"

Taking a deep breath, John steeled his hands on the steering wheel and forced the gas pedal all the way down. The car squealed momentarily, wheels skidding on the rocks before it lurched forward. He turned the wheel sharply and drove off the road, the car nearly bottoming out over a bump before gaining speed. The whole process only lasted a few seconds before the Conibear was in the headlights.

Everyone braced for impact as the car crashed head on into the bot. Instead of smashing into the hood, the bear was pushed back with the car and it drove up over its legs, lodging itself up on its body.

Jessica gave a sharp gasp as the car came to a sudden halt, the front still stuck up in the air a few feet. She had been yanked back into the seat by the seatbelt, which she was now clutching for dear life.

"Is everyone okay?!" she cried.

Charlie straightened up in her seat and found herself unharmed. She checked Sammy too and found him undamaged, though his eyes were now glowing without flickers, signaling that he was rousing. She noticed a quiet from up front and quickly leaned over the seat. "John?!" she asked worriedly. "Did you hit anything?!"

"I hit the bear," John said distantly. He was still gripping the steering wheel as he came down off the adrenaline high. "I'm fine, I just feel kind of sick." She reached out to hug him around the seat.

The brief comfort didn't last when the car suddenly rocked back. The Conibear was still active and alert and now trying to pull itself out from under the car. Springing into action, and absolutely fed up at this point, Charlie grabbed the first weapon she could find- the tire iron left behind by Lamar- and jumped out of the car. Jessica tried to catch her arm but just missed her.

She found the Conibear pinned with its legs stuck under the car and its lone functioning arm trying to lift it off with little success. Its partially mutilated face stared up blankly and its front was still gaped open, with the outer belly 'flaps' unable to close against the car. Charlie looked over the bot quickly and tried to figure out what else she could do while Lamar ran up and the others got out of the car.

"Well… At least it's stuck now," Jessica tried as she watched from a safe distance. She looked back to the resort and could see Mike and Clay making their way over. "Here comes Clay. Maybe he'll know what to do."

But the Conibear was becoming more hostile. It rocked its body forward, almost bucking the car off of it and freeing itself from the hold. The chances of Clay having something that would destroy the bot were slim, and it would take too long to wait for the scattered cops to get there- if the radios were still being distorted by the bear itself. Something had to be done now.

Charlie couldn't help but stare at that exposed spine and wires. Located right behind the crushing mechanism, it was clear that these were its Achilles heel. If she could overload them with the stronger taser it was possible that she could short circuit the whole system, burning the bear from the inside out. Though that would mean getting the hand taser past the crusher.

The answer was literally in hand: the tire iron. Charlie circled to the other side of the Conibear, where its remaining hand couldn't reach her, and lined up her aim before thrusting the metal cross into the bear. The crusher tried to snap closer only to be caught by the cross, which was kept from slipping by the crude spikes. She could only hope that it would hold long enough for her to work.

"Charlie, I hope you're not thinking of trying to- _Don't you dare reach in there_!" Jessica yelled in aghast. They all figured out what she was going to as she threw her jacket on the hood and unhooked her taser. John stepped forward to try and stop her, only to have her thrust her free hand back at him.

"Lower me in! I know what I'm doing!" Charlie said. Against his better judgement, John trusted her a second time and took her hand in a secure grip to help he lean in.

Charlie started to reach into the Conibear before having to lean to the side to skirt its claw. Though it became much less threatening when a second later Mike swooped in and with only a few swings, chopped off the entire arm just beneath the shoulder. The other arm was held at bay by Clay who knelt on it. Much to everyone's surprise, he didn't stop Charlie, he just watched like a hawk, ready to step in if anything went wrong.

Once she was as close as she could get, and sure the tire iron was going to hold, Charlie reached out with the taser and jammed it into the wires. She pressed them back to the spine to make sure they would both be affected and let loose the full force of the charge.

The Conibear began to seize violently, almost more so than even Freddy had. Its head thumped back against the ground as its flaps knocked against the front of its car. Strangely enough though, Charlie noticed that the crushing mechanism wasn't reacting the same way. She had assumed that it would, which would risk the tire iron falling out of place, but instead the mechanism seemed to grip harder.

A few of the cops had noticed what was going on and began to approach. Clay noticed and quickly yelled to them, "Get back! Go check the others!" Thankfully, they did as told, as the situation was too precarious to have any distractions. Any wrong move and Charlie would be crushed in the prison designed for her twin.

Though it soon became apparent that something was going wrong. The tasing was still working in causing the Conibear to seize, the wires were now smoking and their casings melting against the spine. The tool itself grew heated in her hand but she was able to withstand it due to the adrenaline high. Yet it looked like the walls had gotten closer.

That was when Jessica had spotted it: the tire iron, a tool made completely of metal, was beginning to fold under the pressure of the crusher. "Oh my God, it's bending the tire iron!" she yelled.

John's eyes shot open at he looked further downward to see that Jessica was right. Clay, who couldn't see it from where he was, gave sharp bark of, "Pull her out!"

"Not yet! I just need- I need a few more seconds!" Charlie begged. The Conibear wasn't seizing as much and more of the nest wires were now melting together. She was so close to destroying it once and for all and guaranteeing that it would never come back, never to be rebuilt. "I'm almost there! I've almost got it!"

"The jack!" Jessica suddenly yelled. She pulled Lamar back towards the car before throwing herself across the passenger's seat and leaning enough to pop the trunk- which was still popped from earlier. "There's a jack in the trunk! We can use that!"

"I'm on it!" Lamar said. He ran behind the car and began to dig through the supplies in the trunk, Jessica soon joining him to search.

The walls were still continuing to press in like some diabolical failsafe and once the tire iron began to bend it began to severely loose its strength. Any moment it could lose its last amount of hold. Mike and Clay were helpless, with neither the axe handle nor shotgun capable of holding it open, let alone fitting in the now smaller space. The only one who had any control was John, and that was quickly running out.

Everything happened very quickly. Beyond the noises of the bot itself, there was a strange squeaking noise that Charlie recognized as the tire iron sliding against the wall of the crusher as it reached the point of collapse. There was no going back, she didn't even have enough time to tell John to pull her back as in only a few second the Conibear would close on her.

She got out nothing more than, "It's closing-!"

Before the axe was suddenly shoved in right in front of her, barely her arm, and catching the walls with the length of its head alone. It gave the extra seconds she desperately needed to finish the job.

She had thought it was Mike up until she looked up to see the black fingers wrapped around the handle. It was Sammy, who was fighting his weakened body and immense fear of the bear to protect her.

Mike himself was left standing there in shock, having just been blindsided by a black figure crawling up his body and snatching his axe out of his hands. He wasn't the only one watching either, with Clay outright staring at the Puppet while John only briefly looked at Sammy before turning his attention back to Charlie. He hoped the axe would hold for just a little longer.

It didn't need to. Right when Charlie was sure that the taser was beginning to burn her skin, the nest of wires suddenly burst into flames. She yanked her hand back and John took the cue to swiftly pull her back out. Everyone watched with bated breath as the Butcher shuddered weakly before its body finally went still. The fire continued to spread inside it as the light finally left its eyes.

Sammy fought to pull the axe free and eventually yanked it loose. He staggered back on unsteady legs, the axe falling over his shoulder, only to suddenly sway forward again and bring it down into the Conibear's face. It sliced straight through the rubber mask and into whatever endoskeleton was underneath with a loud crunch. He left it lodged in the Conibear's split face as he raised to full height.

There was a long moment that passed then filled with silent discontent. It was finally over, the Butchers had been destroyed- to their knowledge- but maybe at a greater price. The Puppet had been seen, Clay was right there watching the entire thing, there were cops on the scene who could be watching. He felt so many eyes that he could no longer distinguish who's they were.

But then he raised his head and met Charlie's gaze. A beat passed, and then Charlie managed a smile. Even through the living nightmare of tonight and the uncertain future, she was able to smile, and even though he had his default one cemented on his face she could somehow tell that he started to return it honestly.

The Butcher's Traps had been destroyed. They would finally wake up to a brand-new day without the fear of monsters taking them in their sleep.

And then Sammy had a jacket thrown over his head and was snatched up off of his shaky legs. He fought it and got as far as wrapping his strings around his captor's arm before realizing that it was Mike, who covered the Puppet and hustled around the car to hide him before anyone else could see.

Clay snapped out of whatever trance he was and called after him. "This car's not moving anytime soon, Mike. Head over to mine. The doors are still unlocked." Mike got a skeptical look before jogging off in that direction. Clay looked over the others and added, "Same goes for the rest of you. You can take my car home, we'll be here cleaning up for a while… Charlie, if you could stay back for a minute?"

That was enough to make her nervous. Especially when he proceeded to remove the axe from the Conibear's head and replace it with the shotgun, firing off into the bear's head. It sounded like it did a lot more damage than they could see, and it was loud enough to make everyone tense or jump.

John grabbed her jacket from her hood and offered it to her. She took it with a quiet "thank you" and slipped it on, during which he rested a hand on her back and leaned in.

"Do you want me to stay?" he asked. She couldn't tell if it was for moral support or fear that the animatronic would get back up. The way he eyed it of the corner of his eye seemed to suggest the latter.

She gave him an assuring smile. "I'll be fine. You go on ahead and I'll just… Tell him the truth," she said.

He nodded and leaned in to kiss her on the cheek, then started to follow Jessica off. Both of them kept looking back like they were reluctant to leave her. Lamar hesitated long enough to pull a camera out of his jacket pocket and get a couple of picture of the Conibear before following along with them.

Now Charlie was alone with Clay, who was speaking into his radio to alert his men of the final animatronic to secure. As she suspected, it must've been the Conibear disrupting the signal as the radio was working fine now. Once he finished, he turned to her to speak, but she beat him to it.

"I know how bad this looks, but if you'll just let me explain… It's not as cut and dry as it looks," she began. He seemed to be listening so she continued. "…It's Sammy. He's the Puppet."

Clay didn't even bat an eye and gave a simple, "I figured as much." His nonchalance took Charlie completely by surprise.

"You knew?" she asked in disbelief and he nodded. "How could you know? Unless you mean you just figured it out-?"

"Charlie, I told you I investigated the old Freddy's. That we studied the Toy animatronics, including the Puppet. I had those security codes written down years ago, and between that and you bringing it- _him_ to my house, I started to put a few of the pieces together. It explained some things, like how the Butchers were tracking you so well, and then the static on the camera feed was the same as recorded at Freddy's."

"I'm sorry. I thought about telling you, but- Sammy- I'm trying to keep him safe, and when you started talking about collecting footage… I trust you, Clay, I really do, but I know not everyone's going to look at him and see the human he is," Charlie explained. Clay's face softened. "But he's not dangerous. He's been living with me for months so I can contest to that."

"I believe you. Which is why I won't be mentioning him in the report. If anyone saw him, I'm going to tell them that he is an animatronic you built. None of these men worked on the Freddy case, none of them will be able to recognize him." Charlie felt a huge relief wash over her. "But," Clay added quickly, "I'm going to trust you to keep an eye on him. He may be Sammy but you can't forget that he is still an animatronic. If the wrong hands got ahold of him- and we both know who I mean- they could tamper with him. Reprogram him. Just like these ones."

As much as she wanted to deny it, Clay had a point. Just knowing that someone could program machines to be like this was a disturbing though. She wished the fiery death of William Afton could give her solace, but it didn't, not when this proved that he could reach beyond the grave in a completely different way. Clay noticed the disconcertment on her face and placed an almost fatherly hand on her shoulder.

"But this isn't the time or place to dwell on that. Not after what you've gone through tonight. If it wasn't for you, these things would still be prowling the city."

"Prowling the city looking for me," she corrected with a tepid smile.

"Prowling the city looking for anyone who walked in their path. Now it's finally over. Maybe we can all start to heal…" He looked down at the Conibear and sighed deeply at the sight of it. Then took out his car keys and handed them off to her. "If Carlton's still awake then please tell him I'll be home later." Charlie nodded and took the keys, and Clay smiled at her. "I'm proud of you, Charlie."

Even if Charlie had mixed feelings about this whole thing, something about the way he said that left her flustered. "Well, uh… Thanks, Clay. But if you ever need someone to play bait again, I'm going to have to take a rain check," she said. He gave a half of a chuckle, probably the closest he had gotten to laughing in years, and Charlie finally turned to head to the car.

It was like all of the air was deflated out of her at once. She was heavy and exhausted, shaky and nervous even though it was all supposed to be over. She just hoped they would be able to sleep tonight.

While all this was happening, Mike had run back to Clay's car and nearly threw the Puppet and then himself into the backseat, slamming the door closed behind him. He was still pumped up from everything that had happened, half wired off of it, but kept a clear enough head to scan the windows and make sure there was nothing outside.

After the night they had, he wouldn't have been surprised if a sixth animatronics spontaneously fell out of the sky, but this didn't happen. The night was finally calm- or calm enough around the car.

"Looks like the coast is clear… Did you see that thing throw me directly on top of Freddy? I still can't believe that. I swear it looked back and radar detected exactly where he was and threw me right on his head. And then Freddy nearly took my hand off! That one's been gunning for me, I swear," Mike rambled. He didn't receive an answer.

After a few more seconds with no response or even movement from the Puppet, he lifted up his jacket to peek underneath. "Stripes? You okay in there?"

The Puppet looked shaken, that was the only way to describe it. He was kneeling on the middle seat, crouched down and with his head low, and had a distressed look. One with a slight frown and widened eyes.

"Stripes?" This time Sammy looked up and acknowledged him, though when his gaze fell his look became even more dire. They had just survived the most aggressive animatronics Mike had ever seen and here he was already worrying again, probably about Clay seeing him. Mike had to admit that it worried him too, but he was unwilling to even spare the thought.

Not that he didn't understand how traumatizing this all must've been to Sammy. It was more than the fear of getting caught; Mike himself had seen into the belly of that bear and the fate built for the Puppet. Just thinking about it made him angry in a way he couldn't explain. Because the bear was dead, the man that made the bear was dead, and all of it was over, but it didn't feel like enough.

"Alright, come here," Mike said, sticking an arm out. Sammy seemed unsure, with his eyes flicking to Mike, to his arm, to the window, until he was beckoned with his hand. Finally Sammy slid close beside him and allowed Mike to pull him into a one-armed hug. Despite his hesitation, Sammy quickly caved into the offer of comfort, wrapping his long arms around his middle and pressing his mask into his shoulder.

"That any better?" The tall puppet nodded and hugged a bit tighter. Mike smiled a little. "You scared me back there. When I first saw the girls trying to drag you off, I thought you must've been banged up pretty badly. Or worse… I guess I started getting a little attached to the two of you. Kind of hard not to when you go through all of this together," he confessed. "But hey, we lived."

The noise that Sammy replied with was a little strange. Instead of a chime it sounded like a rattle or a trill. It sounded positive, at least, as he was squeezed tighter.

It didn't last long as Mike glanced out the window and noticed people walking towards the car. "Head's up, here comes Charlie's posse," he warned. Sammy reluctantly detached his arms from him and pulled the jacket further over his head, though then retook his place leaning against Mike's shoulder. Guessing he needed the comfort, Mike kept his arm where it was.

Jessica climbed into the backseat through the other side and scooted into the middle, Lamar following to take the window seat, and John got in the driver's seat. The tone in the car was immediately awkward with a long period where nobody said anything. John stared out the window to see when Charlie would walk up, Mike and Lamar both looked out their respective windows, and Jessica sat quietly alongside Sammy.

She stole a quick look at the Puppet, who was still turned towards Mike and clutching the jacket to himself with tight fingers. She could see his tenseness in his hand alone and bit her lip. Then, making up her mind, she reached out and brushed her fingers on his. It must've startled him as his head turned abruptly, though he didn't pull away.

Jessica gently rested her hand on his and pulled it from the jacket, instead holding it in hers. He adapted to it slowly and cautiously laced his fingers between hers. It felt like a massive breakthrough; Jessica couldn't help but smile to herself at the thought.

Finally Charlie made it to the car. She briskly walked around the front and got into the passenger side, dropping into the seat and shutting the door behind her. She turned her head to find everyone looking at her.

"How'd it go?" John asked. She handed him the keys and he began to start up the car.

"Better than I expected," Charlie said with a small smile. "I'll explain when we get to Clay's, I need a second first."

John didn't press any further and shifted his focus on turning the car around. Charlie leaned back against the passenger's seat and closed her eyes. The long night was finally coming to an end.


End file.
